General John Nicholson, the top USA military commander in Afghanistan, will now be allowed to determine when American forces should advise and assist conventional Afghan Army units. There is a broad desire across the Obama administration to give the military greater ability to help the Afghans fight and win the war.
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The Taliban control or contest more territory in Afghanistan than at any time since they were ousted by a USA -backed intervention in late 2001, and U.S.
Obama’s decision removes some key restrictions that barred us support forces from actively fighting against Taliban militants. Obama said that action sent “a clear signal to the Taliban and others that we’re going to protect our people” because Mansour and the Taliban had been “specifically targeting USA personnel and troops inside of Afghanistan”.
The Defense Department had been expected to announce on Friday changes in the USA military operation in Afghanistan to increase the ability to attack Taliban targets, but it was canceled on Thursday according to several officials familiar with the effort. Only special forces assist their Afghan counterparts on the battlefield.
The Taliban are refocusing their attention mostly on the southern provinces of Helmand, Kandahar and Uruzgan, according to USA and Afghan military officials. “And we anticipate that by offering them more support, in the form of advice and assistance and occasionally accompanying them on their operations, that they are likely to be more effective on the battlefield”, Earnest added. “Afghanistan doesn’t support the reduction of USA troops in the country, and their broadened presence is helpful and necessary in combating terrorism”. Under the new rules of engagement the USA can accompany Afghan forces when they’re offensively pursuing the Taliban to achieve a “strategic gain”.
That means that USA forces should not be expected to accompany Afghan soldiers on day-to-day missions.
Gen. John Nicholson, the top US commander in Afghanistan, has discussed with Defence Secretary Ash Carter his recommendations for moves the USA can make to further assist the Afghans.
The White House has been reluctant to approve new authorities to expand the air campaign for two reasons.
Afghanistan on Saturday hailed Washington’s decision to expand the United States military’s authority to tackle a resurgent Taliban insurgency, saying the support will boost the capacity of struggling local forces. It’s also in the same sense that we’re looking at the number of troops. “It’s a good use of the combat power that we have there”.
Carter pushed back on any notion that expanded authorities mean a change in mission.
“There was no single “precipitating event” that led the commanders to ask for the expanded authority, one defense official said, but the Taliban have been making gains around Afghanistan and putting pressure on the USA -supported Afghan military”.
The U.S. and China have been brokering peace talks between the official Afghan government under Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban.
The Afghanistan plan Mr. Obama signed off on previous year calls for reducing the 9,800 American forces there to 5,500 by January 2017, when he leaves office. Campbell favoured keeping the troop level at the current total of 9,800 into next year.
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US officials have insisted they are encouraged by the Afghan forces’ resilience, despite their high rate of battlefield casualties. The expanded USA role comes less than a month after a US drone strike in Pakistan killed Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour.
