Oregon Public Broadcasting

Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley is travelling in Afghanistan, as part of a trip through the South Asian subcontinent. April Baer reports.

Merkley’s spokeswoman Julie Edwards says the Senator left last Thursday, in the company of several colleagues, for a trip that leads through some of the thorniest venues for U.S. foreign policy.

Day-by-day details of the trip aren’t available for security reasons, but Edwards says the Senator has met with top-level U.S. officials like General Stanley McChrystal and Ambassador Karl Eikenberry.

The nine-day mission includes two days each in Afghanistan and Pakistan, as well as stops in India and Kuwait. 

Merkley’s purpose is to learn more about diplomatic, economic and governmental efforts to stabilize Afghanistan.

The visit comes just as the U.S. government announced the capture of a top Afghan Taliban commander, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. The catch has been described as a joint project between the CIA, and Pakistan’s spy agency.