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Troop pledges by allies fall short
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration's effort to get NATO allies to send new combat forces to Afghanistan has produced pledges from six countries for about 2,000 troops, far less than the 7,000 to 8,000 troops that NATO commanders say are needed.
The reinforcements — heralded by White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley at NATO's recent summit with the words "help is on the way" — include some that were promised long ago and others that require parliamentary approval. For example, it includes 400 pledged by Poland last year and 120 that need approval from the Czech Republic's Parliament.
The bulk — 700 from France and 500 from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, an aspiring NATO member — also was announced before the NATO summit this month in Bucharest, Romania.
By far the biggest commitment at Bucharest came from the United States, which is adding 3,500 Marines to its 31,000 troops now in Afghanistan.
Most of the new commitments were for equipment or training rather than combat troops.
"A lot of what ended up being promised at Bucharest is window dressing," said Seth Jones, an Afghanistan expert at RAND Corp., a non-partisan think tank. "In very stark terms, what the NATO summit showed is that the United States is not going to be able to count on its NATO allies to fill the gap in Afghanistan."
The Afghanistan war is NATO's primary mission, and the Bush administration had made bolstering foreign commitments — to beat back Taliban fighters in the south — its priority for the summit.
Hadley said in Bucharest that "about 12 or 13 countries" offered contributions.
In an e-mail to USA TODAY, NATO listed 10 nations that offered some form of help, including the United States. That includes Italy, Greece and Romania, which will send small teams of trainers and mentors to help Afghan forces. Poland will add eight helicopters to the troops it pledged in December, NATO said.
Several countries adding to Afghanistan plan to withdraw troops from Iraq. Georgia hopes to remove most of its 2,000 troops in 2009. Poland is removing its 900 troops in the fall.
NATO commands 47,000 troops and civilians in Afghanistan from 40 countries. The commitments made at Bucharest represent a 4% increase. That was enough to prevent Canada from carrying out a threat to withdraw about 1,000 troops if other countries didn't step up. France's agreement to send 700 troops to the eastern region will free up U.S. forces to help Canada in the violent southern region of the country.
"What NATO did at Bucharest was to reaffirm its long-term commitment to Afghanistan and agree to focus in key areas to achieve this success," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council.
Even with the new pledges, the 39 other nations combined will contribute about 30,000 troops — about 4,500 fewer than the United States will have in Afghanistan.
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration's effort to get NATO allies to send new combat forces to Afghanistan has produced pledges from six countries for about 2,000 troops, far less than the 7,000 to 8,000 troops that NATO commanders say are needed.
The reinforcements — heralded by White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley at NATO's recent summit with the words "help is on the way" — include some that were promised long ago and others that require parliamentary approval. For example, it includes 400 pledged by Poland last year and 120 that need approval from the Czech Republic's Parliament.
The bulk — 700 from France and 500 from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, an aspiring NATO member — also was announced before the NATO summit this month in Bucharest, Romania.
By far the biggest commitment at Bucharest came from the United States, which is adding 3,500 Marines to its 31,000 troops now in Afghanistan.
Most of the new commitments were for equipment or training rather than combat troops.
"A lot of what ended up being promised at Bucharest is window dressing," said Seth Jones, an Afghanistan expert at RAND Corp., a non-partisan think tank. "In very stark terms, what the NATO summit showed is that the United States is not going to be able to count on its NATO allies to fill the gap in Afghanistan."
The Afghanistan war is NATO's primary mission, and the Bush administration had made bolstering foreign commitments — to beat back Taliban fighters in the south — its priority for the summit.
Hadley said in Bucharest that "about 12 or 13 countries" offered contributions.
In an e-mail to USA TODAY, NATO listed 10 nations that offered some form of help, including the United States. That includes Italy, Greece and Romania, which will send small teams of trainers and mentors to help Afghan forces. Poland will add eight helicopters to the troops it pledged in December, NATO said.
Several countries adding to Afghanistan plan to withdraw troops from Iraq. Georgia hopes to remove most of its 2,000 troops in 2009. Poland is removing its 900 troops in the fall.
NATO commands 47,000 troops and civilians in Afghanistan from 40 countries. The commitments made at Bucharest represent a 4% increase. That was enough to prevent Canada from carrying out a threat to withdraw about 1,000 troops if other countries didn't step up. France's agreement to send 700 troops to the eastern region will free up U.S. forces to help Canada in the violent southern region of the country.
"What NATO did at Bucharest was to reaffirm its long-term commitment to Afghanistan and agree to focus in key areas to achieve this success," said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council.
Even with the new pledges, the 39 other nations combined will contribute about 30,000 troops — about 4,500 fewer than the United States will have in Afghanistan.
It's touching to see how well NATO is responding to what it regarded as an attack on all member nations. Really. It brings tears to my eyes to see such solidarity among the alliance members.
USA 
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