United States and Canada

NATOSource

January 13, 2010

Sen. Levin to Press Allies to Honor Pledges

By the AP

From the AP: Afghanistan is facing a major shortage of instructors needed to train Afghan forces, a senior American lawmaker said Wednesday, calling the deficit “inacceptable.”

Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, said he would press nations in the international coalition to honor their pledges to train the Afghan security force, so foreign troops can eventually go home…

He said the NATO coalition had only 37 percent of the trainers it needed to teach initial eight-week courses for Afghan recruits.

“I was really surprised to see what a major shortfall we have in that area,” Levin said. “We need a lot more of our coalition partners to step forward and to provide a lot more of those trainers.” (photo: Getty)