The 1st Marine Embedded Training Team, under Lt. Buddy Rushing, was going out to five outposts up in the mountains about two kilometers inside of the Afghan-Pakistani border. Their mission was to inventory and spot-check weapons and ammunition with the 1st Company,1st Kandak, Afghan Border Police (ABP).  They were kind enough to invite me along.

This is appallingly rugged country.  These particular outposts were up over 8,000 feet in the mountains, up paths only inches wide and on an incline of 45’ or sharper. The day we went -- a couple of days after Easter -- it was 93 degrees with bright sun.  In the dry heat no one sweats, which means the wind gusts can make you think you’re not overheating until, surprise, you drop from heat exhaustion. Hydration is important, but water bottles and Camelbaks get heavy if you’re already carrying an M-4 or a 9mm.

We rode Humvees to an ABP outpost about an hour “up-country” and then switched to Ford Rangers. The Marines and ABPs rode to a most desolate spot.  From there, we would climb to the mountain outposts overlooking the camel caravans plodding in and out from Pakistan.

Lt. Rushing and his Marines linked up with the 1st Company commanding officer, Commander Mustapha at OP-1.  A dour man with a hook nose and a surprisingly red beard, Commander Mustapha, sat us down, offered chai, and described how the National Government of President Hamid Karzai paid his men less than those of the Afghan Army (U.S. $60 vs. 70/month).

“I am fortunate that I come from a wealthy family, so I can subsidize the failings of the government,” Mustapha said.  He went on complaining about how his superiors gave him 100+ square kilometers of incredibly mountainous area to patrol with not enough men, and then made him responsible for border and customs security from the Pakistani border to 50 kilometers inland.

Lt. Rushing nodded and smiled.  He’d heard the same spiel before, and he and his men still had to climb to four outposts and be out of the area by dark.

“Time to move,” the LT announced.  He, SSGT Jamiel Dudley, Sgt Adam Schauffer, Sgt “Mac” McGranaghan and HM3 Curtis “Doc” Jones stood up and filed out.  They herded together two terps, two guides, one California National Guardsman, SFC Robert Simon, up the mountain along with me.

Being fit in the United States bears no resemblance to being fit here. Within three-hundred uphill yards, the patrol had separated into three groups.  Some Marines and one guide were aggressively attacking the mountain.  Other Marines and a different guide were leisurely strolling up the mountain.  I was silently competing with SFC Simon to see who would not finish last. Neither of you two is going to die on my watch,” Doc Jones announced fifteen minutes into the climb.  That was somewhat disappointing.  It meant we had to keep hiking.  Simon and I stopped, caught our breath, and continued their trudge.

Upon reaching OutPost 2, some 7,900 feet up, Mac and the LT. salaam’ed the three Border Police who were standing guard. Mac and SSgt Dudley took a terp and disappeared into the small stone hut.  They did a quick inventory of weapons (AK-47’s), and ammunition (not very much). Through the other terp, Lt. Rushing talked to the BP’s about insurgent activity (none), as well as any Pakistani Army incursions (also none).

I didn’t learn that until after it happened.  By the time Simon and I arrived at the OP, the Border Police were lighting a fire and offering chai to their American visitors, whom they looked happy to see. The Afghan Border Police and the Afghan Army seemed to look at their ETT mentors with a sense of pride and fear.

The muscular SSgt Dudley towers over the Afghans, and Mac is all business as he deals with BP’s far senior to him. Schauffer and Doc eyeballed the area, checked on their BP wards, and took care of the little things that the BP’s needed to improve. 

Gently, Lt. Rushing asked Simon and me, who had tied for last, if we were ready to hike to three more OP’s, only one of which was visible. Rushing was on a no-s**t mission to check on these OP’s, and while his two guests were welcome to continue up, he said, perhaps it was prudent that they stay at this OP.

Lacking the knees and back of these younger, more rugged men, pride took a back seat to common sense and -- much to Lt. Rushing’s relief -- I decided to stay put.  SFC Simon thought that he might be able to make his way to one more, which he did.   With most of the Marines and terps already fifty yards up the narrow trail, Rushing waved and joined his men.

While waiting for Rushing, I chatted with Commander Mustapha. These OP’s are located up on these ridgelines for a reason – often times there are Pakistani OP’s located less than 100 yards away, within hailing distance. Better equipped than the BP posts, the Pakistani’s are watching the Afghan movements, as well as, we suspect, electronically listening to American radio traffic.

As much as the Taliban or Al-Qaeda, Pakistan is considered the enemy by most Afghans.  A few months ago a Pakistani (Army?) unit crossed the border and attacked several OP’s, killing 14. The Afghan Border Patrol rallied and eventually drove them back, killing 80.  Commander Mustapha said that cross-border incursions are far more common than we in the West are aware.

“It was the Pakistani ISI that created the Taliban,” Mustapha lectured to me, “and it is Pakistan that continues destabilizing Afghanistan.”   With international politics in this region grounded in blood feuds going back generations, I respect Commander Mustapha more for the courage of his convictions than for the accuracy of his information.

A few hours later, the patrol returned. I was told that the missions at the other OP’s were similar to that of OP 2. Check their weapons. Check the amount (and condition) of the ammunition. Let Doc do his thing. Talk to the BPs. Let them know that the Marines are there to support them… a message best sent by appearing unannounced at 8,500 feet.

As Lt. Rushing led us down off the mountain -- a trip that strained my knees almost as much as the climb -- one thing was clear.  Regardless of the ethnic, religious, or national make-up of any future invaders, the Afghan Border Police, young and underpaid as they may be, are a little prouder today, and a little more confident in their ability to fight, because of the training and morale visits by their roving American partners.