.NATO officer sees tough winter in east Afghanistan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - NATO's commander in eastern Afghanistan said on Friday that his manpower-strapped military force could be heading into the worst winter of insurgent activity since 2002, soon after the battle of Tora Bora.
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, who also commands the 101st Airborne Division, said attacks across Afghanistan's eastern tier have been running 20 percent to 30 percent above last year's levels overall through August.
That is down from a 40 percent surge in attacks in the same region during the spring. But the latest numbers still reflect an intensified insurgency that has deepened U.S. security concerns about Afghanistan.
"A slow win, I guess, is what we're accomplishing," Schloesser said of NATO's efforts to thwart insurgents in the 48,000-square-mile (125,000-sq-km) area known as Regional Command-East.
Schloesser, speaking to reporters at the Pentagon by videolink from Afghanistan, said he requested thousands more troops to bolster NATO's effort in the region, which shares a 450-mile (725-km) border with Pakistan tribal areas that are home to al Qaeda and Taliban safe havens.
His comments were the latest in a string of warnings from defence officials and commanders that NATO needs more troops in Afghanistan to tackle an intensifying insurgency.
Under recommendations made to President George W. Bush by U.S. defence chiefs this week, an extra Army combat brigade -- about 4,000 troops -- would go to Afghanistan early next year following troop cuts in Iraq, defence officials said.
FRESH FORCES
A senior defence official said on Friday a U.S. Marine battalion and support forces also would head to Afghanistan in November to replace about 1,200 troops who are training Afghan security forces in southern Afghanistan.
Schloesser said a network of militant groups with a combined force of 7,000 to 11,000 fighters is expected to keep greater numbers of guerrillas in eastern Afghanistan this winter in hopes of staging a new surge of attacks next spring.
"The level of significant activities, maybe violence, will be higher than any previous winter since 2002," he said.
Military officials said Schloesser was referring to the winter of 2001-2002. In December 2001, U.S.-led forces battled al Qaeda fighters in the mountains of Tora Bora in one of the most famous engagements of the war that toppled Afghanistan's Taliban regime.
Commanders have said NATO forces can defeat Taliban and al Qaeda-linked fighters but that NATO does not have enough troops to then hold onto that territory.
"I've got a couple of areas here throughout RC-East that I have very low numbers of troops in ... I can come in and I can clobber the enemy, but then I can't hold it and stay with the people," Schloesser said.
U.S. commanders in Afghanistan have asked the Bush administration to send another three combat brigades, or about 10,000 troops, to help reinforce the western military effort.
There are 33,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, including 14,000 under NATO's 53,000-strong military force. The United States contributes the most troops to the NATO force, followed by Britain.
Reuters
U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, who also commands the 101st Airborne Division, said attacks across Afghanistan's eastern tier have been running 20 percent to 30 percent above last year's levels overall through August.
That is down from a 40 percent surge in attacks in the same region during the spring. But the latest numbers still reflect an intensified insurgency that has deepened U.S. security concerns about Afghanistan.
"A slow win, I guess, is what we're accomplishing," Schloesser said of NATO's efforts to thwart insurgents in the 48,000-square-mile (125,000-sq-km) area known as Regional Command-East.
Schloesser, speaking to reporters at the Pentagon by videolink from Afghanistan, said he requested thousands more troops to bolster NATO's effort in the region, which shares a 450-mile (725-km) border with Pakistan tribal areas that are home to al Qaeda and Taliban safe havens.
His comments were the latest in a string of warnings from defence officials and commanders that NATO needs more troops in Afghanistan to tackle an intensifying insurgency.
Under recommendations made to President George W. Bush by U.S. defence chiefs this week, an extra Army combat brigade -- about 4,000 troops -- would go to Afghanistan early next year following troop cuts in Iraq, defence officials said.
FRESH FORCES
A senior defence official said on Friday a U.S. Marine battalion and support forces also would head to Afghanistan in November to replace about 1,200 troops who are training Afghan security forces in southern Afghanistan.
Schloesser said a network of militant groups with a combined force of 7,000 to 11,000 fighters is expected to keep greater numbers of guerrillas in eastern Afghanistan this winter in hopes of staging a new surge of attacks next spring.
"The level of significant activities, maybe violence, will be higher than any previous winter since 2002," he said.
Military officials said Schloesser was referring to the winter of 2001-2002. In December 2001, U.S.-led forces battled al Qaeda fighters in the mountains of Tora Bora in one of the most famous engagements of the war that toppled Afghanistan's Taliban regime.
Commanders have said NATO forces can defeat Taliban and al Qaeda-linked fighters but that NATO does not have enough troops to then hold onto that territory.
"I've got a couple of areas here throughout RC-East that I have very low numbers of troops in ... I can come in and I can clobber the enemy, but then I can't hold it and stay with the people," Schloesser said.
U.S. commanders in Afghanistan have asked the Bush administration to send another three combat brigades, or about 10,000 troops, to help reinforce the western military effort.
There are 33,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, including 14,000 under NATO's 53,000-strong military force. The United States contributes the most troops to the NATO force, followed by Britain.
Reuters
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