The Pentagon says a Washington Post story claiming it is making an"unannounced" deployment of 13,000 additional troops to Afghanistan isinaccurate.
US Soldiers in AfghanistanAPentagon spokesman, Colonel Dave Lapan, says the Post story itselfnotes that the 13,000 support troops are within the overall maximumauthorized by President Barack Obama earlier this year.
"Thestory confirms that 68,000 is still the number. So nothing ismissing. Nothing is hidden. The 13,000 doesn't somehow increase from68 to above that. So we've consistently said by the end ofthe year, on the current glide path, 68,000. And as the storyacknowledges, that's where we'll be," said Lapan.
He explains, as Pentagon officials have in the past, that thedeployment of major combat or training units always requires thedeployment of additional support troops. The support troops perform avariety of functions such as mine clearance, equipment servicing,construction, air support, medical services and many others.
WhenPresident Obama took office in January, there were about 34,000 U.S.troops in Afghanistan. Within weeks, he approved a Pentagon requestfor an additional 21,000 combat and training troops, plus supportunits. Shortly afterward, officials made public that the supporttroops would number up to 13,000, bringing the overall total to 68,000by the end of the year -- a doubling of the deployment from when hetook office. The 68,000 figure has been widely reported ever since.
Again, Colonel Lapan.
"Thesense that there are somehow 13 that weren't authorized orthat are somehow new, well then that would make the 68 number go up by 13,000, wouldn't it? But it's not," Lapan said.
ThePentagon says there are now about 65,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan,with more on the way in the coming months. There are also about 39,000troops from other NATO and coalition countries.
President Obamaand his national security team are considering a request from his newcommander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, for a substantialnumber of additional troops. The official number is secret, but newsreports say the general wants about 40,000, possibly more.
Therequest is controversial, not least because with the U.S. troop levelin Iraq expected to remain around its current 120,000 for at leastseveral more months, the strain on the U.S. Army is considerable.
