More troops are required in Afghanistan to combat rising terrorism: US General
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WASHINGTON: Afghanistan's security situation is so tenuous that the top U.S. commander there wants to keep as many U.S. troops there as possible through 2016 to boost beleaguered Afghan soldiers and may seek additional American forces to assist them.
Army Gen. John Campbell said in an interview with USA TODAY that maintaining the current force of 9,800 U.S. troops to train Afghan forces and conduct counter-terrorism raids is vital, and that the scheduled reduction to 5,500 by Jan. 1, 2017, should be put off as long as possible.
For 2016, Campbell has issued four challenges to Afghan troops, he said. First, they need to drive down attrition by creating a system that allows troops to train, fight and rest to drive down rates.
The Afghan military also needs to move from manning checkpoints to taking the fight to the Taliban. Finally, military brass needs to root out bad commanders and do a better job recruiting.
"I think this will drive the Taliban to the peace table," Campbell said. "If they don't do those things, it's going to be a tough fighting season." (USA Today)
