Afghanistan Troop Increase Plus Last Year’s Addition is Pretty Close to McKiernan’s Request
This is kind of some back-of-the-envelope troop math, but when I wrote earlier that Obama’s new 17,000-troop increase to Afghanistan was lower than Gen. David
Jul 31, 202067.7K Shares1.9M Views
This is kind of some back-of-the-envelope troop math, but when I wrote earlier that Obama’s new 17,000-troop increase to Afghanistan was lower than Gen. David McKiernan’s requestsfor around 30,000 troops, I should have noted that about 5000 additional soldiers and Marines were tapped last yearto go to Afghanistan as well. (I don’t know the added Marine battalion — mea culpa — but the Army sent the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division to the Logar-Wardak area.) That puts the total near 23,000 — reasonably close to McKiernan’s request.
Also, Defense Secretary Bob Gates last month expressed reticenceover Americanizing a war that he said badly needed an Afghan face. So maybe it’s not surprising that he would support giving McKiernan most but not all of his requested increase.
Paula M. Graham
Reviewer
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