US projects three more years in building Afghan army

It will take three more years for the US-trained Afghan army, intended to assume security responsibilities now shouldered by foreign forces in Afghanistan, to reach the planned goal of 70,000 soldiers, a US commander said on July 13. Army Maj. Gen. Robert Durbin, who heads the US effort to train and equip Afghan government security forces, said the national army numbers "a little bit over 30,000," and that it is growing at a rate of 1,000 per month, with a plan to reach 70,000 in roughly three years. As in Iraq, US officials have emphasized the importance of forming capable government security forces to take up the task of bringing law and order to a war-ravaged country. US commanders in Iraq have pledged to have a 137,500-strong Iraqi Army fully manned by the end of this year. Durbin, commander of Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, told a Pentagon briefing that Afghan security forces are making steady progress, but overcoming absenteeism and developing capable leaders remain "a challenge." He said 3,500 US troops out of a force of 23,000 in Afghanistan are dedicated to training the Afghan army and police. Durbin said there are about 62,000 police officers in Afghanistan. About 58,000 are considered trained but only 37,000 are considered equipped. He said 86,000 vehicles are needed for the national police, and there are only 2,000 now. He said some of the first Afghans who volunteered for three-year stints in the army are reaching the end of these terms, and about 35 percent are re-enlisting, well below the goal of 50 percent.