“Generals always ask for more troops”–Afghanistan will swallow them up as it has done in the past

Posted on 08 November 2009. Tags: US National Security Advisor James Jones

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Obama adviser urges caution on extra Afghan troops

Defence undersecretary says more foreign troops certain in new Afghan plan
Generals always ask for more troops
Afghanistan will swallow them up as it has done in the past

BERLIN/BRUSSELS: There is no guarantee that sending extra troops to Afghanistan would solve

NATO’s problems, and that they could just be “swallowed up”, US National Security Advisor James Jones said on Saturday.

In an interview published in the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel, Jones was asked whether he agreed with General Stanley McChrystal, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan, that an increase of about 40,000 troops was needed.

Always asking: “Generals always ask for more troops,” Jones said.

“I believe we will not solve the problem with troops alone. The minimum number is important, of course. But there is no maximum number. You can keep on putting troops in, and you could have 200,000 troops there and Afghanistan will swallow them up as it has done in the past,” he said.

After weeks of internal deliberations, US President Barrack Obama’s advisers are believed to be moving towards a hybrid strategy that would combine greater protection for population centres with more drone and special operations strikes against the Taliban.

The leading options under consideration would add at least 10,000 to 15,000 US troops, but an announcement is expected to be weeks away.

Jones was asked how much longer US forces would remain in Afghanistan, an area of foreign policy that has come under increased scrutiny since the revelation that the Afghan presidential vote in August was heavily tainted by fraud.

“I don’t know how long,” he said. “But I know our president and other heads of government are pressing for everything to be done to ensure the Afghans assume responsibility,” he added.

Jones said terrorist networks were continuing to develop in Pakistan, Reuters reported.

When asked if it was possible that Islamabad could lose control over its nuclear weapons, the national security advisor said, “ It is something that we work on with the Pakistanis regularly. I’ve been assured that they’re doing everything they can to make sure that these weapons are very tightly controlled and secured.”

Asked if the US was in negotiations with the Taliban, Jones said, “No. We’ve let this electoral process play itself out, and now we will reengage with the government once it’s formed. And then we will seriously consider all issues to bring security and stability to Afghanistan, as well as reconciliation and reintegration.”

Separately, Defence Undersecretary Michele Flournoy said Obama’s new strategy for Afghanistan would be certain to include reinforcements of foreign troops from both the US and allied nations, AP reported.

She said a strategy decision on new deployments involving the US and other troop-contributing nations would be made within the next few weeks.

“No one is talking about leaving Afghanistan, or even standing pat. We are increasing our commitment and we’re talking about how best to do that with both civilian and military resources,” Flournoy said.