Robert M. Cassidy, Ph.D., Colonel, USA (Retired), is a teaching fellow at Wesleyan University and a senior fellow at the Center For Advanced Defense Studies. He has served in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Central Command area and Grenada. Before retiring earlier this year, he served in Afghanistan helping assess the Afghan Special Security Forces.
He is the author of three books and a number of articles on war and strategy. He has master’s degrees in international relations, security studies and strategy from Boston University, the Fletcher School, the École de Guerre, and the U.S. Naval War College. He has a doctorate from the Fletcher School, in strategy and irregular warfare.
A policy to win in Afghanistan requires undermining the Taliban’s strategic base – the external support and sanctuary that Pakistan continues to provide.
