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BRUSSELS: Pentagon chief Jim Mattis met NATO allies Thursday to brief them on US strategy in Afghanistan, as the head of the alliance said it would bolster troop numbers to help train local forces to contain a resurgent Taliban.
Members of the 29-member NATO are looking to Mattis for fresh insight about President Donald Trump’s intentions in a war that has dragged on for nearly 16 years since 9/11, and one which even US generals concede is a “stalemate” at best.
“I’ll share with them our appreciation of the situation, assessment of the situation, and talk about what we’re doing in terms of framing the strategy and filling in any gaps left in the strategy,” Mattis told reporters as he flew to Europe.
Diplomatic sources said an increase of up to 3,000 troops from the current number of 13,500 is under consideration, while US officials have said the number might be more like 4,000.
NATO played the lead role in Afghan security from 2003 to the end of 2014, when it handed frontline duties to the Afghan military and took on its current advise-and-assist mission known as Resolute Support.
But just over two years on, NATO commanders want more troops after recent gains by the Taliban, who have inflicted catastrophic losses on the struggling Afghan security forces.
Such requests are stoking fears that NATO could get sucked back into the conflict just as it faces a host of new threats including Russia, terrorism and cyberattacks.
Stoltenberg confirmed that NATO would increase its troop numbers but these forces would not be in combat.
He said 15 countries had already pledged more contributions and he hoped for more, without giving a precise figure in either case.
“We have to understand this is about training, assistance, advice... It is not to conduct combat operations but to help the Afghans fight,” Stoltenberg said.
The extra troops could help bolster Afghan special forces, improve Kabul’s air force to provide ground support and evacuations, and step up officer training, the former Norwegian premier added.
US troop levels peaked at around 100,000 under Barack Obama, who later embarked on a steady drawdown aiming to completely end America’s combat role in the country.
British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said London would provide nearly 100 troops, on top of 500 already in Afghanistan.
“We’re in it for the long haul,” Fallon told reporters.
Norwegian Defense Minister Ine Marie Eriksen Soreide said Norway had just prolonged its engagement in Afghanistan.
“We expect that other allies will also come around and give the same contributions and also some of the same kind of commitments,” she said.
Mattis was due to brief allies later Thursday, but Stoltenberg said he did not expect him to give specific troop numbers.
What we are “going to do is try to construct a capability that fills specific gaps, not just throws numbers against the wall,” Mattis said.
Mattis, a retired Marine general who fought in Afghanistan, has stressed that his new approach, to be presented to Trump by the middle of July, will have a broader “regional” emphasis and not be beholden to any timelines.
Trump has remained remarkably taciturn on Afghanistan, but this month gave Mattis authority to set troop numbers at whatever level he sees fit.
The US president has pushed NATO to do more to counter terror and for the allies to increase defense spending to ease the burden on Washington.
Stung into action by Russia’s intervention in Ukraine, NATO has embarked on its biggest military buildup since the end of the Cold War to face a more assertive Moscow.
Defense ministers discussed progress just as four “tripwire” battalions totalling some 4,000 troops complete their deployment in the three Baltic states and Poland.
In a statement to mark the event, the four countries and the four lead nations — Britain, Canada, Germany and the United States — said the battle groups were “ready and able to deter and, if necessary, immediately respond to any aggression.”
Stoltenberg warned on Wednesday that NATO must also step up its defenses against cyberattacks after ransomware hackers caused chaos worldwide.
The global terror threat, highlighted by the Daesh group, also figures high on the ministers’ agenda after NATO leaders agreed at a summit last month to join the US-led anti-Daesh coalition.