DefenceTalkDefense Secretary Jim Mattis said Monday that the US military is adjusting tactics in Afghanistan as the Taliban continue to inflict heavy casualties on local forces. The Taliban are killing hundreds of Afghan army and police forces each month. The New York Times said the death toll is making it harder to recruit new soldiers. […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-adjusts-tactics-as-afghan-army-toll-rises-mattis-71876/

DefenceTalkHERAT, Afghanistan: Afghan aircraft Tuesday bombed Taliban positions in the western city of Farah after the insurgents launched a major attempt to capture the provincial capital, with fearful residents seeking shelter from explosions and gunfire. The attack – the first major assault targeting a city since the Taliban launched their annual spring offensive – began […]https://www.defencetalk.com/heavy-fighting-as-taliban-attack-western-afghan-city-71683/

DefenceTalkThe Pentagon pledged Monday to be as transparent as possible about how many troops are deployed overseas, after an agency published figures that diverge significantly from official counts. According to a quarterly report from the Pentagon’s Defense Manpower Data Center, as of September 30 the US military had 15,298 troops in Afghanistan, 8,892 in Iraq […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-report-shows-thousands-more-us-troops-deployed-overseas-70866/

DefenceTalkApproximately 3,000 additional American troops have now deployed to Afghanistan under President Donald Trump’s revised strategy for the war-torn country, the Pentagon said Thursday. The Pentagon had previously put the number of US forces in Afghanistan at about 11,000 but Trump in August authorized an increase requested by the commander on the ground, General John […]https://www.defencetalk.com/thousands-more-us-troops-arrive-in-afghanistan-general-70831/

DefenceTalkDefence Ministers agreed today (9 November 2017) to increase the size of NATO’s Resolute Support training mission in Afghanistan from around 13,000 to roughly 16,000 personnel. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg made the announcement at the end of a two-day meeting of the alliance’s Defence Ministers in Brussels. Mr Stoltenberg welcomed the fact that “Afghan […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nato-ministers-agree-to-adapt-command-structure-boost-afghanistan-troop-levels-70772/

DefenceTalkParked at a military runway in Afghanistan near other aircraft used in the fight against the Taliban, the grey-green helicopter appears unremarkable at first blush. A second look at the UH-60 Black Hawk reveals a vital distinction: the US Army’s insignia has vanished, replaced by the triangular logo of the Afghan security forces. The fully […]https://www.defencetalk.com/afghan-air-force-gets-its-own-black-hawk-choppers-70674/

DefenceTalkDefense Secretary Jim Mattis says the U.S. is sending another 3,000 troops to Afghanistan, an increase of over 25 percent in the number of American forces there. Mattis told reporters Monday at the Pentagon that the boost in U.S. troop strength would be “over 3,000,” but he declined to name a specific number. “Frankly, I […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-sending-3000-more-troops-to-afghanistan-70498/

DefenceTalkAn Afghan commando who opened fire on American troops killed three of them and wounded another, US and Afghan officials said, in an insider attack that was claimed by the Taliban. The so-called “green-on-blue” attack on Saturday is the latest in a line of incidents where Afghan soldiers have turned their weapons on international forces […]https://www.defencetalk.com/three-us-soldiers-killed-in-afghan-insider-attack-70157/

DefenceTalkNo decisions on whether to increase U.S. forces in Afghanistan have been made yet, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told reporters in Israel Tuesday. Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford said national security leaders have not gone to President Donald J. Trump yet with Afghanistan troop recommendations for 2017 and beyond. “One of […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-officials-studying-force-size-in-afghanistan-dunford-says-69951/

DefenceTalkThe US military will ask the Donald Trump administration next week to deploy thousands more troops to Afghanistan, a senior official says. US media have reported that the Pentagon will request between 3,000 and 5,000 conventional military personnel, mainly to advise and assist Afghan military and police units in the fight against the Taliban. The […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-to-request-thousands-more-us-troops-for-afghanistan-69918/