U.S. TO BOOST AFGHAN FORCES $6 BILLION A YEAR
Baku, September 7 (AZERTAC). The United States expects to spend about $6 billion a year training and supporting Afghan troops and police after it begins pulling out its own combat troops in 2011, according to the Associated Press.
The previously undisclosed estimates of U.S. spending through 2015, detailed in a NATO training mission document, are an acknowledgment that Afghanistan will remain largely dependent on the United States for its security.
In Brussels, a NATO official said yesterday that alliance commander Gen. David Petraeus asked for 2,000 more soldiers, with nearly half to be trainers for the rapidly expanding Afghan security forces.
The training mission document outlines large-scale infrastructure projects, including a military hospital and military and police academies aimed at “establishing enduring institutions” and “creating irreversible momentum.”
Spending for training is projected to taper off from $11.6 billion next year to an average of $6.2 billion over the following four years. Much of the reduction reflects reduced spending on infrastructure.
The administration recently announced it intends to ramp up the Afghan army and police force from 250,000 today to more than 300,000 by late next year. The mission will be largely paid for by the United States, with smaller contributions from NATO allies.
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