The Senate Armed Services Committee meets on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013, to consider the nominations of Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, left, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Central Command, and Gen. David M. Rodriguez, right, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Africa Command. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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The Senate Armed Services Committee meets on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013, to consider the nominations of Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, left, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Central Command, and Gen. David M. Rodriguez, right, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Africa Command. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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The Senate Armed Services Committee meets on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013, to consider the nominations of Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, left, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Central Command, and Gen. David M. Rodriguez, right, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be commander of the U.S. Africa Command. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond lead their delegations during a bilateral meeting at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Defense Ministers Meetings, Friday, Feb. 22, 2013, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Panetta and his NATO counterparts are considering leaving 8,000 to 12,000 troops in Afghanistan after 2014, but a dispute arose Friday between the U.S. and German defense officials over whether that contingent would be an international force or an American one. (AP Photo/Chip Somodevilla, Pool)
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Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, third from right, and U.S. Ambassador to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Ivo Daalder, fifth from right, arrive for the second day of the NATO Defense Ministers Meetings, Friday, Feb. 22, 2013, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Panetta and his NATO counterparts are considering leaving 8,000 to 12,000 troops in Afghanistan after 2014, but a dispute arose Friday between the U.S. and German defense officials over whether that contingent would be an international force or an American one. (AP Photo/Chip Somodevilla, Pool)
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German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere arrives at the airport of Adana, Turkey, Friday, Feb. 22, 2013 after attending a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels, Belgium, earlier in the day. De Maiziere told reporters Panetta had informed him at the Brussels meeting that the United States would leave between 8,000 and 10,000 troops in Afghanistan at the end of 2014. But Panetta, speaking to reporters later, called de Maiziere's comments inaccurate. (AP Photo/dpa, Rainer Jensen)
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, right, and Britain's Secretary of State for Defense Philip Hammond attend the two-day NATO defense ministers meeting to discuss Syria and Afghanistan, at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. The head of NATO urged member countries Thursday to stop cutting their defense budgets in response to tough economic times, saying continued reductions will compromise the safety of all of the military alliance’s 28 members. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)
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FILE - In this Oct. 10, 2012 file photo, Afghan soldiers stand at attention during the third phase of a transfer of authority ceremony from the NATO- led troops to Afghan security forces in Kunar province, east of Kabul, Afghanistan. NATO is strongly considering a proposal to continue funding a security force of 352,000 Afghan troops through 2018, as part of an effort to maintain security and help convince Afghanistan that America and its allies will not abandon it once combat troops leave in 2014, senior alliance officials said Thursday. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
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Internally displaced Afghans wait in line to receive firewood donated by Welt Hunger Hilfe 'German Agro Action' in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Dec. 30, 2012. Around 240 internally displaced families received firewood. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq)
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Afghan women wait for transportation after receiving flour donated by the women's affairs department, in the Gozara district, Herat province, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2012. The women's affairs department of Herat province donated a sack of flour to around 250 families in the Gozara district. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)
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Graphic shows monthly U.S. troop deaths in Afghanistan since October
US general sought larger US force in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON (
AP) — The top U.S. military commander in the Middle East told senators for the first time Tuesday that he had envisioned keeping about 20,000 troops in Afghanistan after combat operations end in 2014, far more than the number the Obama administration and
NATO are considering.
Gen. James Mattis, head of U.S. Central Command, said he personally recommended the U.S. leave 13,600 troops in Afghanistan and that he assumed the NATO allies would probably contribute "around 50 percent" of the U.S. total, which would be roughly 6,500.
"We have to send a message of commitment," Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
U.S. and NATO leaders said last month that they may keep between 8,000 and 12,000 troops in Afghanistan after combat troops leave by Dec. 31, 2014. At a NATO meeting in Brussels, former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta acknowledged the range being considered, but noted that no final decision has been made.
Panetta said that most allied defense ministers assured him they were committed to remaining part of a U.S.-led coalition after combat forces leave Afghanistan.
Pressed by senators Tuesday about the possible reduction of troops over time after 2014, Mattis said he would not want to forecast a specific troop withdrawal timetable through 2018 because war is unpredictable.
"My concern is that at the end here we're going to drop the ball and I don't want to do that," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
Mattis responded that, "if the Afghan security forces continue to mature the way they have been and we hold them at that full strength into 2018, there may be more reductions we can take."
U.S. and NATO leaders have said they are strongly considering a plan to continue funding a security force of 352,000 Afghan troops through 2018, as part of an effort to maintain security and help convince Afghanistan that America and its allies will not abandon it once combat troops leave in 2014, senior alliance officials said Thursday.
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Associated Press reporter Sagar Meghani contributed to this report.
Tags:
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