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NATO To Be In Afghanistan For Years

23 February 2006 -- The commander of Canadian forces in Afghanistan says the country is plagued by "huge problems" and NATO troops will remain there for "years and years."

Major General Michel Gauthier made the remarks in an interview with the British daily "The Guardian" published today.

Gauthier said the situation was particularly difficult in the south where the Canadian Expeditionary Force Command has taken a lead role.

His published comments come a day after a bomb strapped to a bicycle exploded near an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) convoy in the northern city of Kunduz, killing two Afghans and injuring several, including a German soldier.

NATO-led ISAF is currently boosting its troop numbers in Afghanistan from 9,000 to about 16,000, as peacekeepers move into the unstable south where Taliban forces continue to operate four years after the US-led invasion.

(AFP)

Copyright (c) 2006. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org