Posted on 04/06/2009 6:16:19 PM PDT by Steelfish
Commander says Afghan handoff 'years away' Militant havens in Pakistan remain a challenge, he tells newspaper execs
U.S. Army Gen. David McKiernan, commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force, says the opium trade is eating away at Afghanistan.
SAN DIEGO - The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan said Monday it will be years before coalition forces can make a complete handoff to Afghan security forces, despite the arrival of thousands of new troops beginning this month and signs of diplomatic progress.
Army Gen. David McKiernan told newspaper executives gathered at The Associated Press annual meeting that militant havens across the border in Pakistan remain a challenge.
And while he said that the Afghan army is now leading 60 percent of missions in Afghanistan, Afghan police lag in their ability to provide security.
Many of the 21,000 new troops arriving this month will be directed to the nation's southern region and will be trained to work as mentors to Afghan troops in addition to working in counterinsurgency operations.
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
B. Hussein O meant in years to come!!!!
I don’t know why the U.S. needs to stay in Afghanistan any longer. The TAliban is gaining ground. After 7 years, Afghanistan is still the world’s number 1 producer of poppy for heroin, Karzai has no control, there is no central government. I used to think it was to keep the enemy engaged so they wouldn’t attack us on our own soil. But now that there are training camps right here in the U.S., upstate NY for goodness sakes, what is the point. If they strike and we know it’s come from Afghanistan just blast them from the sky. The country is a disaster and Europe, even with their affection for Zero, refuse to help.
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