Ensuring Security During the Afghan Elections - 2004-05-30

A senior U.S. Army officer in Afghanistan announced that approximately 10,000 Afghan soldiers will be used to help ensure security during the elections in that country in September. General Craig Weston, in an interview with reporters in Kabul, stated that the new Afghan National Army forces, alongside the Afghan National Police, U.S.-led coalition forces, and international peacekeepers, will be responsible for maintaining order and security for the elections. General Weston mentioned that plans have been made to deploy Afghan army forces at bases located in four regions: Mazar-i-Sharif in the north, Herat in the west, Kandahar in the south, and Paktia in the southeast of unstable Afghanistan. He added that about 20,000 coalition forces will provide air support for Afghan soldiers and ensure the immediate transfer of the injured to medical facilities if necessary. In some areas of Afghanistan, militants and local armed groups have resisted government efforts to disband and disarm them. Meanwhile, the Afghan government has requested NATO member countries to deploy their forces outside the capital before the elections, but so far, NATO members have not responded quickly to this request.