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Canadian
American
Strategic
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New Afghan Strategy  –  US  Military  Reports  –  New  President  –  January  2009 US Military  –  New  Deployments  &  New  Strategy  in  Afghanistan Canada  should  keep an open mind about extension of  CF mission Edited  excerpts  of  article  published  by  Associated  Press  (AP)    [1] US  Commander  in  Afghanistan ,  General  David  McKiernan ,  wants  Stryker  Brigades As the Pentagon  looks to double the existing  force in Afghanistan,  the overall  cast of  the military's growing  force in Afghanistan  is becoming clearer.  Commanders  want  to beef  up the expeditionary units  and  trainers in the south and  east with enough  new troops to stem the violence, without  being an occupying  force  that would  alienate the Afghan population. Their challenge  is to get  troops into the hundreds of  tiny  villages  in the  volatile southern region,  where   the  Taliban   insurgency  has  been  centered.   To  do  that,  General   David McKiernan,   the  top  US  Commander  in  Afghanistan,   has  asked  for  more  mobile forces. He believes that  the  US Army's LAV III-based  Stryker vehicles [ below]  will allow soldiers to  move  more  easily  along   the  rugged   trails  to  the  widely  dispersed   tribal  enclaves.   Stryker Brigade Combat Teams   Each of  these US Army combat   teams  comes  out - fitted   with   several  hundred  eight-wheeled,   nineteen-ton  armoured vehicles.   Strykers offer greater protection   than  ' Humvees ' ,  but  are  more   manoeuvrable  than  the  heavily   armoured, mine-resistant vehicles   that  are being  used  across  Iraq.   [Left: US Army Stryker with cage] Army  and  Marine  commanders  still  wrangling  over  which  troops  are  needed  where [2] By the end of  January 2009, Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to approve sending more  Marines  to southern Afghanistan, effectively lowering their numbers in  Iraq's western Anbar  province.  Gates  is  also expected  to approve  the  deployment of  the  Camp Lejeune, NC-based  2nd  Marine Expeditionary Brigade ( MEB ) to Afghanistan by the end of  January. But  senior officials say  they are still  working out  the  numbers. A MEB can vary in size and makeup,  and  can swell  to as many as 20,000  Marines, although a total  that  high is unlikely. Senior military officials say there is general agreement on cutting back the number of Marines in  Iraq,  but  US Army officials still  have concerns about how to free up the Stryker vehicles. With  generals  heading  the Iraq war  reluctant to give up troops,  and  those  in Afghanistan demanding more help,  Pentagon officials have been struggling to stretch an already-strained force to meet  both needs.  There is already increasing pressure to more rapidly reduce forces in  Iraq, to  meet  Barack  Obama's  stated  intention  to make Afghanistan the  higher  priority. The Key  Question:   What  will  be  the  overall  goal  in  Afghanistan  for  Obama's  Team ? The answer to the question of  the  Obama  team's overall goal for Afghanistan will ultimately determine the size and  makeup of  force structure. Will  President Obama continue out-going President  George W. Bush's emphasis on  spreading  freedom  and  democracy?  That would create the need  for an extensive,  lengthy,  and  diverse effort  to stabilize and  modernize the weak Afghan government, build infrastructure, and require a commitment for decades or more. Or,  will  President Obama  decide that  the mission  is simply to do enough military damage to ensure that Taliban, Al Qaeda, and other terror groups in Afghanistan  –  and those along the Pakistan border  –  are dismantled or defeated enough  to prevent another attack on America? Pentagon press secretary, Geoff Morrell, told reporters that  Obama and  his  national security team are still discussing the Afghanistan strategy and  how it will  take shape. Fundamentally, Morrell said,  it will  be a  counter - insurgency  fight.  President Obama, advised  by Secretary Gates and  the various US military leaders, "will ultimately come to some understanding about where this president wants to lead the mission in Afghanistan." How  to  meet  the  urgent  need  for  US   support   forces  in  both  Iraq   and  Afghanistan ? Under a  US-Iraq  security agreement,  American combat forces  must be out of  Iraqi cities by June of  2009, and out of  the country by 2011. But support forces –  ranging from intelligence and surveillance experts  to engineers and  logistics personnel  –  are specialists the Iraqis do not have.  Iraq  will continue to require US assistance with all  these specialties for some time. At  the same time,  those are the same forces  McKiernan  needs  in Afghanistan  to build  the infrastructure for  his growing  force and  to set up surveillance,  particularly along  the border with Pakistan.  Pentagon officials  have said  they plan  to send  up to 30,000 additional troops to the Afghan war, including  four  ( 4 )  combat  brigades  and  thousands  of  support  forces. Of   those,   Secretary  Gates  said  that  three  (3)  brigades,  and  some of  the support  troops, will  go into Afghanistan  by  the summer  of  2009.  [ A US  brigade  is  roughly  3500  troops.] Re-deployments  have  begun,  but  Full  Increases  in  troop  levels  await  Military  Reviews Even as  decisions on major units  have been delayed,  Gates this week approved  the deploy- ment of  about 2000 new support  troops  to Afghanistan,  including  about  660  Navy  sailors from a  construction  and   engineering  unit   based  in   Gulfport,  Mississippi.  These  sailors, known as  Seabees,  can deploy quickly  for emergencies or disasters, to build roads,  bridges, and  other  facilities. A few hundred Seabees serving in Kuwait  have already been transferred to Afghanistan, according  to  the Navy.  The other  support   forces   include  military  police, medical personnel, and  logistics specialists. Future  troop levels  also depend on the outcome of  several  military reviews  of  the Afghani- stan  strategy  that are underway  or  recently completed,  including a key study  that  officials from the  former Bush administration  intend to deliver shortly  to the Obama White House. [3] [1]  Article  prepared  by  Lolita  C.  Baldor,  in  Washington,  DC.  First published online by       Associated  Press  ( AP ) ,  17  January  2009. [2]  There are currently 33,000 US troops in Afghanistan  –  15,000 troops with the NATO-led       coalition  [ISAF]  and 18,000 who are  fighting insurgents and  training the Afghan Army       and  the Afghan Police.  In Iraq,  there are 142,000 US troops  –  still more than before the       recent  force  build-up,  which  is  credited,  in  part,  for  the decline  in  violence  in  Iraq. [3]  President  Obama  is also awaiting a  comprehensive  report  regarding  security  issues        throughout  the region  from  the chief  of  Central  Command,  General  David  Petraeus.