US forces are getting increasingly bogged down in the Afghanistan quagmire

At a NATO summit that ended in the Romanian capital of Bucharest on Friday, US President George W. Bush promised that the United States will increase its forces in Afghanistan next year no matter what happens in Iraq. He told a NATO session that included Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Thursday that the US is committed to “winning the war” in Afghanistan and will remain committed even after he leaves office in January 2008. His statement came in the wake of a pledge by the US’s European allies to supply nearly 2,500 more troops themselves to join 3,500 additional US Marines sent by Bush.

“The president wanted to make it clear that the United States is committed to Afghanistan for the long haul and to send a signal to our allies that at the same time we are asking them to commit additional troops to Afghanistan that they know that we will also continue to have a significant troop presence there…regardless of the situation in Iraq,” said White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe.

A report published in the Washington Post on Saturday said, “The pledge comes as violence and insurgent activity is spiking in parts of Afghanistan. The administration’s promise of more troops could indicate the beginning of a push, similar to the buildup of (US) forces in Iraq over the past year, to step up counterinsurgency operations next year. Such a decision would probably fall to Bush’s successor, but Defence Secretary Robert M. Gates said he senses bipartisan support.”

The Post quoted Gates as telling American reporters traveling with him on Friday as he left the Bucharest summit for a Middle East trip, “I think that no matter who is elected president, they will want to be successful in Afghanistan.”

The Post said that US National Security Adviser Stephen J. Hadley signaled the commitment to sending additional American troops to Afghanistan in 2009 during a media briefing in Bucharest on Thursday. “We have plans to contemplate additional contributions of troops in Afghanistan in the south in 2009,” Hadley said, adding that “these are all in addition to the 3,500 Marines now going to Afghanistan.” The News