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Afghanistan politics: US seeking to spread security burden(EIU Viewswire Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) COUNTRY BRIEFING US officials have announced plans to withdraw between 2,500 and 4,000 soldiers from Afghanistan, and to give the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) a more prominent role in policing the south and east of the country. Canada and the Netherlands also decided to increase substantially their troop numbers--concerns that the Netherlands could reverse this position proved unfounded, after the Dutch parliament voted to approve plans to send an additional 1,400 troops. Canada will triple its presence on the ground to 2,000 soldiers in February. Other countries committing extra troops include Australia, Sweden, Germany and France, although not all will operate in the south. If the US is able to reduce significantly its local military presence, the move should have positive domestic political benefits for its president, George W Bush, as well as freeing up resources for campaigns in other parts of the world. The US also seems keen to soften its image within Afghanistan. The new US ambassador to Afghanistan, Ronald Neumann, has signalled this change of approach, stating that the US has shifted priorities towards the rebuilding of Afghanistan's infrastructure. A number of top-level US figures have visited the country in recent months, including the vice president, Dick Cheney, and the defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld--the latter on his tenth visit to the country. SOURCE: Country Report SOURCE: Country Report |