BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan (AFP) — The United States' top Marine commander flew into Afghanistan Monday to meet troops in the field, at a time when the Pentagon increasingly turns its attention to fighting the Taliban.
Marine Commandant General James Conway flew into the US military base at Bagram north of Kabul and was to spend the next few days visiting some of the 3,400 troops at Marine Corps bases in the region, an AFP reporter travelling with him said.
The Marines are among nearly 70,000 international troops in Afghanistan helping the country to fight the resurgent Taliban whom officials say are being assisted on the battlefield by a growing number of non-Afghan fighters.
The soldiers are also involved in training the Afghan security forces which are expected to be able to take over from their international counterparts in the coming years.
While the Corps' top officer periodically visits troops in the field, this trip is significant in its focus on Afghanistan.
Conway is expected to spend more time at Marine bases in the country in comparison to previous visits, despite the fact the bulk of the Corps' deployed resources are in Iraq.
The Pentagon this month extended the deployment of 1,250 of the Marines, who are training Afghan police in the southern and western parts of the country, for 30 days until November.
It had previously extended to November the deployment of a 2,200-member Marine expeditionary unit that is fighting in the south.
Conway's trip comes as the Pentagon leadership is increasingly turning its attention to the fight against the Taliban.
US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said he wants to beef up the 34,000-strong US force in Afghanistan and has endorsed a 17-billion-dollar plan to double the size of the Afghan army over five years.
Conway's visit comes after it was announced that US-led troops killed eight Afghan civilians held by Taliban insurgents during an air strike that also left 25 rebels dead.
The strike came after coalition soldiers were ambushed in southern Uruzgan province on Sunday, a coalition statement said.
It was also announced that a Latvian soldier with the NATO force was killed taking to 156 the number of international troops killed Afghanistan since the beginning of the year.
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