Afghan Army Must Grow To 325,000: US
07 August 2009
'US Intelligence Head Says Afghan Army Must Grow to 325,000', Bloomberg, 6 August 2009
EXCERPT: "Afghanistan's army must more than triple in size to about 325,000 to effectively protect its population, according to the top U.S. intelligence official. The army under the current U.S. plan is slated to grow from 93,000 to 134,000 by 2011, a commitment requiring Afghanistan to boost the army's budget from about $242 million...
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Canada Rejects NATO Call To Extend Mission
07 August 2009
'', AFP, 6 August 2009
EXCERPT: "Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon reaffirmed Thursday Canada's 2011 exit from Afghanistan despite reported pleas from NATO's chief for an extension of Canada's deployment in the war-torn country. 'Our government is abiding by the motion passed in parliament in 2008 -- that is that our combat forces will leave by 2011,' Cannon said. Earlier,...
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Afghanistan Election: Guns And Money
07 August 2009
'', The International Council on Security and Development, 7 August 2009
EXCERPT: "Afghanistan's presidential elections, to be held on 20 August 2009, will be a critical moment for a country struggling to deal with a violent Taliban insurgency and a crisis of legitimacy. After eight years of working to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven for terrorist groups, the international...
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Global Citizens More Cautious About Afghan War
07 August 2009
'Global Citizens More Cautious About Afghan War', Angus Reid Global Monitor, 7 August 2009
EXCERPT: "While the Obama administration has been steadfast in its decision to ban the term 'war on terror', there is no such thing as a global sentiment regarding the military operations in Afghanistan. As its eight anniversary approaches, the multinational effort is becoming harder to understand and easier to reject in the countries...
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