Now that there is a sensible President, the Allies of the US are ready to help.
That WOULD NOT have happened, had America gone down the route of a 3rd Rethug term.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=ahRBSXt2OOLQ
Gates Says NATO Allies to Boost Afghan Aid, Trainers (Update2)
Email | Print | A A A
By James G. Neuger and Ken Fireman
Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- NATO allies pledged to send more military trainers to Afghanistan and step up civilian aid in response to the U.S. troop buildup to fight the Taliban, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said.
Gates said the pledges at a North Atlantic Treaty Organization meeting in Krakow, Poland, today mark a “good start” in the Obama administration’s campaign for a beefed-up European role in Afghanistan.
“Nineteen or 20 countries announced at one point or another that they would be increasing their contribution on either the civilian or the military training side,” Gates told a press conference after the two-day meeting. NATO has 26 member states.
President Barack Obama this week ordered an additional 17,000 U.S. soldiers to Afghanistan, adding to pressure on European allies to bolster their role in the war against the Taliban, now in its eighth year.
Gates declined to criticize European governments that have refused to boost their military contingents, saying economic and reconstruction aid is equally important.
“We are making a substantial addition to the military side and if other countries are unable to strengthen their military commitment but they are willing and able to make a contribution on the stability side, on the development, governance side, those contributions would be very welcome,” Gates said.
Afghan Army Expands
NATO is pouring resources into building up Afghanistan’s army, slated to grow from 79,300 soldiers now to 134,000 by the end of 2011. The alliance now has 49 teams training Afghan recruits, and needs to add 20 more.
A 25,000-strong U.S. contingent forms the core of NATO’s force in Afghanistan, with roughly 13,000 more U.S. troops conducting counterterrorism missions independently of alliance command. The rest of NATO has fielded 31,000 troops, led by 8,300 from the U.K.
Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell later provided details on the commitments for Afghanistan made at the Krakow conference. He said 10 nations agreed to send extra troops to help provide security for the August elections. He said the biggest commitment came from Germany, which agreed to send 600 additional troops. He declined to name the other nations because they have not yet announced their commitments.
Morrell said three countries agreed to provide additional air assets, consisting of cargo planes and fighter jets, for the election security effort, and five are sending medical teams.
Other Commitments
Other commitments obtained at Krakow for Afghanistan included 15 additional teams to train Afghan security forces and five nations agreeing to send more helicopters, Morrell said.
Financial commitments at Krakow included 5 million Euros ($6.42 million) to pay the costs of election security, 2 million Euros ($2.57 million) for expanding the size of the Afghan army, 2 million Euros ($2.57 million) to support civilian services and 2.5 million Euros ($3.21 million) to buy more helicopters for Afghan security forces, Morrell said.
Separately, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said that Ukraine, an ex-Soviet republic bidding to join the alliance, made a “highly appreciated” offer to add to its unit of 10 advisers in Afghanistan.
Gates said the U.S. will complete its review of Afghan policy in time to consult allies and request new commitments before Obama attends his first NATO summit on April 3-4.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
