Addressing a press conference on Thursday ahead of the defense ministers meeting in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that the organization will increase its presence in Afghanistan.
 
“Our military authorities have requested a few thousand more troops for the Mission in Afghanistan and today, I can confirm that we will increase our presence in Afghanistan. 
 
“Fifteen nations have already pledged additional contributions to Resolute Support Mission. And I look forward to further announcements from other nations,” he said.
 
“We will end the day with a meeting of all nations contributing to our Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan and we will discuss the future of NATO’s presence in the country.”
 
Asked whether he thought sending in more troops to Afghanistan would improve security, he said the organization sees a need to increase its support to Afghanistan in three areas – namely strengthening the special operations forces; supporting the development of the Afghan air force and stepping up efforts to train the leadership and educate officers.
 
“We have seen that the Special Operations Forces in Afghanistan have been very professional and very important in the fight against the Taliban and we are now working on how we can further strengthen the Special Operations Forces of the Afghan Army,” he said.
 
He said the air force was important in the fight against terrorist groups and the Taliban; and for medical evacuations and providing support to the armed forces on the ground.
 
But he reiterated this was not about returning to a combat role.
 
“Again, this is not about turning back into a combat mission, but this is about adjusting, strengthening the train, assist and advice mission we have in Afghanistan, supporting and helping the Afghans.”
 
He did however say that Thursday’s meeting would not necessarily result in a decision on final troop numbers but that their aim was to make sure they had sufficient troops in place to continue to support Afghanistan, so that advances can be made on the battlefield.
 
He said: “We all agree that in the long run what we need, the only sustainable and lasting solution in Afghanistan is a political and negotiated solution. Of course, we look forward to the final decisions by the U.S when it comes to the U.S troop contributions to our mission in Afghanistan.
 
Defense ministers from NATO allied nations are scheduled to meet in Brussels on Thursday, where Afghanistan will be discussed.