Free Republic

AUSTRALIA would send about 200 extra troops to Afghanistan to help reconstruction efforts, Prime Minister John Howard said today. Mr Howard said the troops would be part of a Dutch-led provincial reconstruction team (PRT). The latest deployment will take the total number of Australian troops in Afghanistan to about 500. "Australia has decided to send an Australian Defence Force reconstruction to Afghanistan," Mr Howard said. "It will begin deploying, we think, late in July." Mr Howard said the Australians would be deployed over two years. Last month, the Government decided to send an extra 110 troops and two helicopters to...