http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2353444,00.html
Nato rejects appeal to boost Afghan troops By Michael Evans, Richard Beeston and Tim Albone in Kandahar London Times Septemb er 12, 2006 * Germany, Italy, Spain and Turkey ignore request for reinforcements SOME OF America's closest Nato allies have abandoned Washington on the key battleground of the War on Terror, the bloody struggle against Islamic militants for control of southern Afghanistan. Five years after the world stood "shoulder to shoulder" with America in the aftermath of 9/11, The Times has learnt that many of the countries that pledged support then have now ignored an urgent request for more help in fighting a resurgent Taleban and its al-Qaeda allies. Turkey, Germany, Spain and Italy have all effectively ruled out sending more troops. France has not committed itself either way, but the military sources in Kabul said that there were no expectations that the French would contribute to a new battlegroup, especially now that they were providing a substantial force in Lebanon. They have rejected an appeal from General James Jones, the American Supreme Allied Commander Europe, for 2,500 more troops to fight alongside American, British, Canadian and Dutch soldiers. The 26-nation alliance has not volunteered a single extra combat soldier. Britain, which has 5,500 troops in Afghanistan, most of them in the south, has told its Nato partners that they must do more if the line is to be held against the resurgent Taleban. The conflict has cost the lives of 33 British troops since June. Pitched battles were raging in Afghanistan yesterday, where Nato estimates that 600 Taleban fighters have been killed in its new offensive. Twenty Nato soldiers, including 14 British servicemen who died when their Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft crashed on the first day, have been killed. Only the newcomers to Nato have indicated that they would be prepared to send more soldiers. Latvia, with an army of 1,817 soldiers, plans to increase its presence in Afghanistan from 36 to 56 people. Neither Norway nor Denmark is planning to send reinforcements. The Netherlands is already playing a significant role in the south. "Terrorism remains a threat to all of us. This is why we are in Afghanistan, the cradle of 9/11," Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Nato Secretary-General, said. The muted response from Nato members cast a shadow over solemn tributes in America and Britain yesterday for the nearly 3,000 people killed on 9/11. President Bush travelled from New York to Pennsylvania and finally to the Pentagon for memorial services at the sites where the four hijacked airliners came down. "My job is to protect this country," he said. "And I am going to, within the law. And it gets second-guessed all the time by people who don't live in the United States." In a clear dig at his critics abroad, he added: "Let me remind you: September 11th for them was a bad day; for us it was a change of attitude." The tone could not have been more different from the atmosphere five years ago when allies, and even some traditional American foes, lined up to offer Washington military assistance, intelligence and diplomatic support, in particular for its aim to destroy al-Qaeda and overthrow the Taleban regime in Kabul. Ayman al-Zawahiri, deputy leader of al-Qaeda, said yesterday in an internet broadcast that America and Britain had already lost their wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and that the terror group was now preparing a new campaign against the Gulf states and Israel. In Afghanistan Nato forces admitted that they were dangerously overstretched, but there was no suggestion that the Taleban and its al-Qaeda allies were winning the battle for control of the country. The Taleban are more ferocious and more determined than any time since they were overthrown by US-led forces in late 2001. As well as carrying out suicide bombing they are also fighting hand-to-hand, occupying and controlling towns and districts for days at a time under the noses of Nato troops. Yesterday battles raged in Helmand and Kandahar provinces, two Taleban strongholds. Five mourners were killed by a suicide bomber in Khost at a funeral for a former governor, assassinated by a suicide bomber on Sunday. In Kandahar, Canadian and other Nato troops entered the tenth day of Operation Medusa to root out hundreds of suspected Taleban fighters just 15 miles from the provincial capital. British troops supported the Afghan Army in recapturing the district of Garmser, only 30 miles from a British base. It fell into Taleban hands last week for the second time in two months. Nato sources told The Times yesterday that "no one has come forward" with any reinforcements for the war. One military source in Kabul said: "We're not just looking for extra troops. We want a proper battle group of fighting soldiers who are prepared to confront the Taleban in southern Afghanistan. No one seems to want to commit combat troops." However, the military sources in Kabul said: "We need an alliance member with experience and the troops to match to lead a battle group that can be deployed in southern Afghanistan. We just don't know who is going to do it." An official at Nato headquarters in Brussels said: "There has been no rush of offers so far." The silence from Britain's Nato partners coincides with a week in which 19 bodies of British servicemen who died in Afghanistan are being repatriated. Five were flown back to RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire yesterday. The fourteen who died in the Nimrod crash will be returned today. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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