An officer in the New Zealand Army, from May to December 2005 Major Glenn King served as one of five patrol commanders for his national contingent's provincial reconstruction team (PRT) that was operating in Afghanistan's Bamiyan Province and, in this capacity, was in charge of 10-11 soldiers and two interpreters. Although describing his area of operations as "relatively free of any terrorists or infighting," King said that there was still a great deal of reconstruction work to be done in the wake, first, of Soviet occupation and then of Taliban influence. That said, maintaining security was nonetheless a principal task. "We had to maintain a constant presence in the AO in which we were operating," he explained, "to work hand in hand with the Afghan National Police to ensure that security was being achieved. Secondly," King continued, "I worked a lot with the local sub-governor and chief of police to identify potential projects within the area that would assist the local people's advance in terms of reconstruction - anything from identifying a well within a village, because they may not have access to potable water, to identifying an area where a school can be built. Then to link it all together, we facilitated discussions with the non-governmental organizations that were operating in that area," chiefly Oxfam, which focused primarily on the areas of agriculture, medical care and education. In this interview, King also discusses the extensive predeployment training his team went through, the joint nature of the New Zealand PRT, as well as his close working relationship with local Afghans. In addition, he talks about his experiences as an international officer working with Americans, offers advice for how combined operations can be more effectively conducted, and also contrasts his PRT with a neighboring one run by US soldiers. "I think a lot of their force protection measures restricted their time spent living and interacting with the local populace," King observed. "The strength of a PRT," he added, "is derived from its ability to get out, live with and interact with the local populace. If the threat and subsequent force protection measures do not allow this freedom of movement, the patrol loses this important interface ability."

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