Top U.S. commander in Afghanistan opens door to a ‘few thousand’ more troops deploying there
By Dan Lamothe February 9 at 11:53 AM
General calls for thousands more U.S. troops in Afghanistan
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Army Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr. tells members the Senate Armed Services Committee, Feb. 9, he needs several thousand more international troops in order to break a stalemate in the war with Taliban insurgents. (Reuters)
The top U.S. general overseeing coalition military operations in Afghanistan said Thursday he has a “shortfall of a few thousand” coalition troops, opening the door to more U.S. military advisers deploying in an effort to bolster the effort to train and advise Afghan security forces.
Army Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr. told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the additional advisers would be part of Operation Resolute Support, the coalition’s advising mission. Nicholson already has enough troops to run a separate counterterrorism operation in Afghanistan, he said, but more military advisers would bolster efforts to improve the country’s ministries and allow the coalition to train more troops below the “corps level,” which includes generals and other senior levels of the military.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2017/02/09/top-u-s-commander-in-afghanistan-opens-door-to-a-few-thousand-more-troops-deploying-there/?utm_term=.6329ea7c770f
