People talk about the “Arab street” erupting. Do they ever worry about the American street? The German magazine Spiegel on Germany’s military commitment to Afghanistan; a commitment that appears to exclude any serious exposure to danger:
The friction arises out of the very real danger being faced by US, UK, Canadian and Dutch soldiers in the Kandahar region. Forty-two Canadian soldiers and 41 British have been killed in Afghanistan. They trail only the US, which has lost a total of 350 soldiers. Together, the three countries account for 90 percent of total coalition casualties.
Meanwhile, German troops in the north have been limited by the parliament in Berlin as to engaging in combat -- and have seen little reason to change those caveats despite NATO pleas for more troops and more flexibility.
Germany makes the point that it has some 2,900 troops stationed in Afghanistan, 6,000 stationed elsewhere in the world, and is tapped out militarily. "We have Lebanon and other commitments," said Helmut Königshaus, part of the German delegation in Quebec City.
While NATO has upbraided some countries for sending too few troops -- Austria only has a token contribution of 5 soldiers -- Germany isn't one of them. The problem is the limitations those troops are under.
No comments:
Post a Comment