EUROPEAN TROOPS FOR AFGHANISTAN

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called on European countries to send additional soldiers to Afghanistan. “It is of utmost importance that an American announcement of increased troop numbers is followed by additional troop contributions from other allies,” Rasmussen said at a joint press briefing with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin. American President Barack Obama is expected to announce an additional 30,000 US troops for Afghanistan next week. “Right now I am travelling and contacting a number of allies with the aim to urge them to increase their contributions to our mission in Afghanistan,” he added. Rasmussen said it was too soon to speak of exact troop numbers for Afghanistan. The US has stepped up pressure on its European NATO allies, including Germany, to deploy more troops to the war-stricken country.