The U.S. general who commands NATO forces warned yesterday that the alliance faces a “defining moment” in showing whether it can follow through on a political commitment to expand operations in Afghanistan. Marine Gen. James Jones, testifying before a Senate committee, acknowledged difficulty last year mustering helicopters and other equipment to meet an alliance decision to take over the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul. He said NATO is making plans to extend ISAF’s reach beyond the capital by establishing at least five security and reconstruction teams around the country. “We simply have to become better and quicker and more efficient at generating the force to support the operational plan,” he said. “And I believe this exercise that we are about to go through with this very ambitious expansion of NATO’s mission in Afghanistan will be a defining moment for the alliance as to whether we have in fact the internal will and discipline to generate the force.” Full Story
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