Fighting Together - Coordination Frictions between NATO Allies in Afghanistan

Abstract

NATO, under the umbrella of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), brought together troops from 28 countries to help support the establishment of peace and security in Afghanistan. ISAF troop consignments were given responsibility for specific operational units. The assignment of responsibilities to different actors could lead to coordination problems. This paper explores whether the provision of security is affected by horizontal frictions (when different countries are responsible for different sides of borders) or vertical frictions (when different countries control different levels of the operational hierarchy). Relying on detailed data from the war in Afghanistan, we find that both horizontal and vertical frictions are associated with higher levels of violence and lower military support activities.