US soldiers load onto a CH-47 Chinook helicopter in the Spira mountains in Khost province, Afghanistan. The commander of US forces in Afghanistan expressed hope Tuesday that the incoming administration of president-elect Barack Obama acts quickly to provide more US troops for Afghanistan. (AFP/David Furst)From Times Online:
The Pentagon wants Britain to use troops withdrawn from Iraq to reinforce Nato’s mission in Afghanistan, despite strong misgivings in the Ministry of Defence.
Speaking before a meeting of defence ministers representing the eight countries fighting in southern Afghanistan, Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon press secretary, said America was sending thousands more troops and expected other allies to do the same.
The MoD has said that the present 8,100-strong force in southern Afghanistan is the ceiling as far as Britain is concerned, but defence officials acknowledged for the first time yesterday that this limit might be breached in due course, and that an increase in numbers had not been ruled out.
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My Comment: Laying the groundwork for the new U.S. President when he assumes power.