Afghanistan May See Special Forces Boost

(NewsCore) - The US is planning a major shift in its Afghanistan military strategy, with elite Special Forces troops taking greater responsibility from conventional units ahead of the 2014 withdrawal, The New York Times reported Sunday.

Under the plan, which is yet to be approved by President Barack Obama, conventional troops will leave first, but thousands of elite forces, who hunt for insurgents and train local troops, could remain in the country after the NATO mission ends in late 2014.

Senior US officials want some training and counterterrorism troops in Afghanistan past 2014, while the Afghan government has shown an interest in maintaining a presence, the report said.

The strategy contrasts to Iraq, where almost all US troops left by the end of last year. Since then, violence has increased and the political situation has deteriorated.

US officials said the plan to bulk up the special forces presence in Afghanistan and extend it beyond the planned 2014 pullout was not a direct response to the situation in Iraq, the report said.

As the 2014 deadline approaches, US officials have met with the Taliban in Qatar for preliminary talks on peace negotiations aimed at ending the decade-long war.

As part of the confidence-building, the Obama administration has taken "operational steps" to move five Taliban leaders from Guantanamo Bay, FOX News Channel reported earlier in the week.

But a leaked US report warned that the Taliban, backed by Pakistan, was ready to take control in Afghanistan once NATO forces leave.

"Though the Taliban suffered severely in 2011, its strength, motivation, funding and tactical proficiency remains intact," the highly-classified report, published by The (London) Times, said. "Many Afghans are already bracing themselves for an eventual return of the Taliban."

Read more: New York Times