In response to the recent earthquake in Haiti, the international community—with the United States in the lead—is once again rushing to provide humanitarian relief to the desperate Caribbean nation. Yet even as initial rescue and recovery operations were unfolding, analysts and observers noted that the tragedy represented an opportunity, after years of poverty and corruption, for countries to commit to a comprehensive, long-term development program in Haiti in partnership with the country’s struggling government. As President Barack Obama has noted, “our longer-term effort will not be measured in days and weeks; it will be measured in months and even years.”

For its part, the U.S. military, which responded to the crisis in characteristically swift fashion, also appears prepared for what could be a protracted, dangerous mission. In the past week, the U.S. military presence in and around Haiti has swelled to over 13,000 personnel, and additional forces are on the way. Though the military’s relief efforts in Haiti are both a moral and strategic obligation for the United States, they will no doubt further strain a force that is already stretched thin in the face of commitments elsewhere.

At this event, AEI hosted Haiti’s ambassador to the United States, Raymond Joseph, for an address on the Haitian government’s plans to rebuild in the wake of the earthquake. Following the ambassador’s remarks, Robert Perito of the U.S. Institute of Peace and Johanna Mendelson Forman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies joined AEI scholars Roger F. Noriega, Thomas Donnelly, and Tim Sullivan for a panel to discuss whether the U.S. military has the resources available for an extended mission in Haiti and what steps the United States should take to lay the groundwork for the country’s long-term reconstruction.