US Preparing Possible 'Surge' in Afghanistan
By VOA News
19 March 2009
The United States could soon turn to a "surge" of military might and civilian expertise in its efforts to crush the growing insurgency in Afghanistan.
Top aides to U.S. President Barack Obama have been meeting in Washington this week hoping to help finalize a new U.S. strategy for the region.
The U.S. currently has 38,000 troops in Afghanistan and plans to deploy an additional 17,000 to break what some now describe as a stalemate against Taliban insurgents. But top officials say more is needed.
One plan calls for boosting the number of U.S. diplomats working with the Afghan government as well as the number of experts, in areas from economics to farming, to help with rebuilding efforts.
The New York Times reports another part of the plan would call for doubling the size of the Afghan army and police forces.
The newspaper says increasing the number of Afghan troops and police officers to about 400,000 would cost the U.S. another $10 billion to $20 billion over the next six or seven years.
Some U.S. military commanders also worry that a rapid expansion would also leave the Afghan security forces more vulnerable to corruption.
Despite the U.S. plans to focus more heavily on Afghanistan, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday that he does not want to be drawn into an "open-ended" military commitment.
He told reporters he worries that such a large U.S. footprint could lead Afghans to see the U.S. "not as their partners and allies, but as part of their problem."
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her British counterpart David Miliband also held talks Wednesday dominated by the situation in Afghanistan.
Clinton said there is an effort to boost what she called "the civilian capacity" of the Afghan government for police and military training.
Miliband said the European Union and NATO allies are pleased that the Obama administration wants to include them in its review of the objectives, strategy and resources for the Afghan war.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
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