Inside Marine Afghan Culture Training
"How much for a cup of chai and cookies?"
That's definitely not a question you expect to hear during a training drill at Quantico Marine Corps Base. The cultural exchange is just one of several scenarios Marines act out with Afghan role players inside a mock village on the base.
Jessica Wattman, a senior conflict specialist with USAID, follows the marines and critiques them as they make their way through a series of missions, including meetings with tribal leaders.
The Department of Defense has invested millions of dollars to teach marines how to interact with Afghan civilians.
Wattman says much of the "US failure" in Afghanistan has been simply a matter of taking their culture for granted.
"What we've been doing in Afghanistan for the last nine years, is going in and assuming we know what the problems are and oftentimes that's simply just not the case," Wattman said.
Watch CBS News' Fernando Suarez report on CBSNews.com's webcast "Washington Unplugged" in the video above.
Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Penn.) and managing editor of "The Hill" Bob Cusack both also appeared on Wednesday's "Washington Unplugged" with CBS News political analyst John Dickerson.
