German troops to stay in Afghanistan after NATO goes

A German soldier in Mazar-i-Sharif, October 17, 2011

From AFP:  Germany will keep troops in Afghanistan after NATO forces leave the country at the end of 2014, German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere told the Bild am Sonntag paper in an interview to be published Sunday.

Troops remaining would concentrate on the training of Afghan forces, the minister said.

They "would be sufficiently armed so as to be able to defend themselves" but "it won’t be about having troops for combat," said De Maiziere.  (photo: Getty)

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