| I feel faint, I'd best go lie down. |
Military chiefs from the 26 NATO allies made little progress Thursday in raising troops to expand the alliance peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, officials said.
| The Belgian Barbers' Corps doesn't want to go, huh? |
NATO's top soldier, however, said he was confident the alliance would meet a late June target for expanding the force into five more Afghan cities despite nations' reluctance to come forward with the required troops and equipment. "We need more, that's clear," said German Gen. Harald Kujat, chairman of NATO's military committee. NATO military and civilian officials had expressed hope the two-day meeting of defense chiefs that wrapped up Tuesday would signal progress on raising troops for what NATO says is its top-priority mission. NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer repeated an appeal for nations to come forward, saying the Afghan mission is a key test of NATO's credibility.
| "C'mon, guys! Kick in, please?" |
Allied governments agreed six months ago to a U.N. request to expand the force, which has 6,000 troops in the capital Kabul and the northern city of Kunduz. But they have balked at providing specialist troops and equipment for the costly and potentially dangerous operation. NATO's top operational commander, U.S. Gen. James Jones, said last month that nations have committed about 85 percent of the forces he needs to expand the mission.
| Any bets on the eventual Spanish contribution to an expanded force? |
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