There's a lot more heat than light coming from the Iraq debate, as the last 24 hours in the Senate showed vividly. But when it comes to Afghanistan, where the war on terrorism began, there's a relative pall.

Last week, I sat down with Afghanistan's ambassador to the U.S., Said T. Jawad, to learn more about a country that's become more and more of an abstraction as the U.S.'s focus remains squarely on Iraq. In today's episode of TPMtv, we bring you part one of our interview with Ambassador Jawad, where he tells us what Afghanistan will require from the U.S. and the international community to come back from the precipice of failed statehood.

Check back tomorrow for the final installment of our interview with the ambassador.