KABUL – Top US and Resolute Support commander in Afghanistan, General JohnNicholson, said US air support to Afghan security forces will be doubled inthe next war season in order put more pressure on insurgents, TOLO News hasreported.
Nicholson made the remarks during his trip to Helmand province onMonday where he attended the US Marine forces command transition from Brig.Gen Roger Turner, who led the forces for nine months at Shorab MilitaryBase, to General Watson.
Nicholson said they will increase the pressure on insurgents on thebattlefields and on their safe havens out of Afghanistan’s borders.
“Next year we will double the amount of close air support that the AfghanAir Force cannot provide because of additional platforms. And we will do asteady increase of the number of UH-60 that will be introduced to the airforce.
So this will go on for several years. The reason is we want to make surethe pilots are trained properly, the mechanics are trained properly and theair coordination is properly developed,” said Nicholson.
He said it is better for the Taliban to join the Afghan peaceprocess, “because negotiation is better than using force for resolvingconflicts”.
Talking on this topic, the Afghan Interior Minister Wais AhmadBarmak termed the US air support to Afghan forces as vital in eliminatingterrorist groups.
“The (air) support has been very effective and in the future the supportwill be tripled,” Barmak told a press conference in Kabul on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Defense meanwhile called on the international community toincrease pressure on insurgents in Afghanistan and on their supporters outof the country.
“US forces have special technology that helps us to target terroristsanywhere they hide,” Defense Ministry deputy spokesman Mohammad Radmanishsaid.
US will invest four billion dollars in the next three to four years in theAfghan Air Force to enable them to stand on their own feet, officialssaid. Buying airplanes, helicopters and training Afghan pilotsand Air Force engineers are part of this effort.
According to the Defense Ministry, the Afghan Air Force conducts at least100 flights daily of which over 10 flights are for targeting insurgents.