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WASHINGTON D.C. (March 26, 2008) - The Afghan National Army will
assume a leading role in the fight against enemy forces this
spring, a military official said in Kabul, Afghanistan,
yesterday.
Enemy activity has been down in recent months due to the harsh
winter weather in Afghanistan, but violence has historically
increased when conditions improve in the spring, U.S. Army Maj.
Gen. Robert Cone, commander of Combined Security Transition Command
Afghanistan, said during a conference call with online journalists
and "bloggers" Mar. 25.
Cone said the coalition was very productive in generating Afghan
forces during the enemy's downtime. "The Afghan National Army
decided to double its production of soldiers over the course of the
winter," he said, "and that'll give us around about 8,000 soldiers
that are … beyond the training base and out into the fielded
units."
The Afghan army now has a fielded force of about 51,000
soldiers, who make up 11 full brigades throughout Afghanistan, Cone
said. An additional 10,000 new soldiers are in training and will be
out in units in the next couple of months, he said.
He said the coalition also is training and fielding six Afghan
commando units equipped with U.S. elite light-infantry tactics.
Three of the six commando battalions are already in the field, he
said.
"The first three battalions have acquitted themselves in
operations with special forces extremely well in their performance
and conduct," Cone said. "It sets an example and tells us what a
well-trained Afghan National Army soldier is truly capable of
accomplishing."
Afghan forces currently are leading the majority of "named
operations" -- which are major operations -- in Afghanistan, Cone
said. "A lot of (the operations) are small right now because the
season hasn't really started," he said, "but we expect (Afghan
forces) to take a very leading role here in the weeks to come."
In addition, Cone said, new equipment was acquired over the
winter to reduce shortages for the Afghan army.
The coalition will be equipping the Afghan forces with M16
rifles at a rate of 10,000 new rifles per month through the summer
and fall, he said. The rifles are a contribution from the U.S. and
Canada, he added.
Afghan forces are also being provided up-armored humvees for
protected mobility and survivability against IED attacks, which
Cone acknowledged are on the rise. The Afghan army will receive
5,000 of the latest version of the up-armored humvee, he said, and
the first shipments have already begun to arrive from acquisition
sources.
The Afghans will begin drivers' training for those vehicles
soon, he added.
Cone also said he recently completed a tour where he visited
each of the Afghan National Army corps headquarters located in
various parts of Afghanistan. The Afghan soldiers are "very much
attuned to supporting the (International Security Assistance Force)
campaign plan," he said.
"I believe that investment in the Afghan forces, in training and
equipment and time, … rewards itself," he added, "because of the
fact that the Afghans now are at a point where they will be taking
the fight to the enemy."
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