Drum BCT deploys near Afghan capital

Drum BCT deploys near Afghan capital
By Fisnik Abrashi - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Jan 27, 2009 8:29:16 EST

KABUL, Afghanistan — Thousands of U.S. troops originally destined for Iraq have deployed south of Afghanistan’s capital in the first illustration of a new military focus on the increasingly difficult fight in the South Asian nation, NATO said Tuesday.

Nearly 3,000 American soldiers with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division out of Fort Drum, New York, moved into the provinces of Logar and Wardak to the south of Kabul, the military alliance said. They will serve as part of the 55,000-strong NATO force in the country.

The latest deployment indicates the shifting focus in military operations from Iraq to Afghanistan, where the U.S. and its allies are trying to turn the tide of Taliban gains and prop up the government of embattled President Hamid Karzai.

President Barack Obama is expected to double the size of American troops in Afghanistan this year, as the country becomes one of his foreign policy priorities.

There are some 70,000 foreign soldiers, including 33,000 U.S. troops, in Afghanistan, the highest number since the Taliban were ousted from power in the 2001 U.S. invasion. The majority of the American troops, including the new brigade, fight under NATO command, which is headed by a U.S. four star general. The rest are part of 13,000-strong U.S. coalition.


Rest of article at: http://armytimes.com/news/2009/01/ap_drum_bct_kabul_012709/%2e