The top American military commander in Afghanistan, Lieutenant General Karl Eikenberry, said Thursday that Washington has no intention of drawing down its roughly 21,000 troops there before early next year. He acknowledged that Taliban resistance has proven stronger than anticipated.
A formal review of force levels is expected in February, when a new commander takes over leadership of the NATO mission covering the whole country. Recommendations on any adjustments would then go up the chain to regional commander General John Abizaid and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
The situation is complicated by Iraq, where sectarian violence has compelled US commanders to maintain more than 140,000 troops through the spring, well above the June low of 125,000. Sustaining those numbers puts serious strain on the Army and Marine Corps, shortening the recovery time between deployments.
To relieve pressure on active-duty units, Army leaders have reportedly discussed calling up National Guard and Reserve forces more often, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in September 2006, in its own words.