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| Afghanistan |
| US to cut Afghan force by 3,000 |
| 2005-12-20 |
| Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld signed orders on Monday that will reduce American troop levels in Afghanistan next year, meaning that 3,000 soldiers in Louisiana will learn before the holidays that they will most likely not have to deploy as previously scheduled. Under the plan, the number of United States forces in Afghanistan is to decrease to 16,000 by next spring, from 19,000 now. The Fourth Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Polk, La., will send a battalion task force of 1,300 soldiers instead of the entire unit of more than 4,000 troops, said a senior military officer who spoke on condition of anonymity because the orders have not been made public. The troops staying home will be on standby, if needed, he said. The American troop reduction has been anticipated since NATO, whose soldiers now oversee security and reconstruction missions in northern and western Afghanistan, agreed to assume control over an American command in the south next year. Additional Afghan security forces, which now number 27,000 soldiers and 55,000 police officers, will also take on additional security duties. The Pentagon spokesman, Larry Di Rita, said the decision to reduce a portion of the Army unit scheduled to replace the 173rd Airborne Brigade, now in southern Afghanistan, was based on recommendations from Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, the senior American commander in Afghanistan, and Gen. John P. Abizaid, the overall American commander in the Middle East and Central Asia. "The overall level of security forces in the country, NATO's role, and the political developments are all moving in the right direction," Mr. Di Rita said in an interview. Congressional officials and the Army unit commanders were notified Monday of Mr. Rumsfeld's decision. A formal Pentagon announcement is expected Tuesday. Pentagon officials were quick to note Monday that the United States would still have the largest number of foreign soldiers in Afghanistan, and that it would remain committed to ensuring political, economic and security gains there. American forces will also continue to have the lead responsibility for counterterrorism missions against remnants of Taliban and fighters for Al Qaeda, who have attacked allied forces from redoubts in the mountainous region along the border or Afghanistan and Pakistan. The battalion task force from the 10th Mountain Division will join NATO soldiers from Canada, Britain and the Netherlands, who are scheduled to take control of the country's southern sector, including Kandahar, around next July, Pentagon officials said. Pentagon officials said they expected similar decisions soon, perhaps as early as this week, on troop levels in Iraq. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 The fight there now is more oriented toward SF and Rangers. Standard brigades are less useful. |
| Posted by: Oldspook 2005-12-20 23:09 |