Parwan Province

Afghan Def Min spox on reported US troop increase, voxs, US patrol

• Report rights infringement
• published: 21 Jul 2015
• views: 5

SHOTLIST Bagram district, Parwan province - March 8, 2009 1. Various of US soldiers during a patrol briefing 2. Soldier holding gun 3. Soldier patrolling 4. Various of US soldiers and Afghan police during foot patrol 5. Soldier aiming rifle Kabul - March 27, 2009 6. Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman General Mohammad Zahir Azimi talking with reporter 7. SOUNBITE (Dari) General Mohammad Zahir Azimi, Afghan Defence ministry spokesman: "Our expectation from this announcement is mainly to focus on the fight against the sanctuaries funding terrorism outside Afghanistan. There should be more investment in Afghan forces so they can replace the international forces in Afghanistan and can defend the independence and stability of Afghanistan." 8. Azimi's hands 9. SOUNBITE (Dari) General Mohammad Zahir Azimi, Afghan Defence ministry spokesman: "One source for the making of the Afghan National Army is in Afghanistan, which is the manpower. The other is something that the international community have promised, they have promised with funding and also with training. With the attention on the training of Afghans, it is a very important step and it can solve most of the problems." 10. Various of Kabul river 11. Street scene 12. SOUNDBITE (Dari) Vox pop, Ahmad Jawid, Kabul resident: "In the last seven years we haven't seen any significant benefits from America and other groups in Afghanistan. So I believe that the new strategy also will not benefit us." 13. SOUNDBITE (Dari) Vox pop, Mohammad Qasim, Kabul resident: "America will not achieve success against terrorism, it is obvious and the whole world knows this fact, because they are only cheating us." 14. Street scene 15. Mosque STORYLINE There was a mixed response in Afghanistan on Friday to US President Barack Obama's expected announcement later in the day that he plans to send thousands more US forces into the country in the hope of hastening the end of a conflict that still has no clear end in sight. Obama is to outline a multitiered strategy that banks heavily on world help and invigorated US diplomacy. A central part of the new strategy is to build up the Afghan army. The president plans to send in four thousand more US military troops, whose mission will be to train and expand the Afghan army to take the lead on counterterrorism. He also plans to send in hundreds more US civilians to help the people of Afghanistan rebuild their nation. Those forces are on top of the 17-thousand extra combat troops that Obama has already approved. The broad US goal remains much as it was when the war began in the fallout of the September 11, 2001 attacks: to dismantle the operations of the Taliban and al-Qaida, which have shifted their power base from Afghanistan to Pakistan in recent years. Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman General Mohammad Zahir Azimi welcomed the proposed increase in US troops and said the focus on training his country's security forces was "a very important step". But residents of the capital, Kabul, were sceptical about the chances of a US troop increase improving conditions in Afghanistan. There are roughly 65-thousand international forces in Afghanistan and more than half are Americans. All of the new military trainers, plus the additional combat forces Obama has already approved, are expected in Afghanistan by autumn. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/8327c753752857e19bcd3c190c5042e1 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork