the pentagon wants an afghanisurge

3,000 more marines to afghanistan
from ap: The Pentagon is preparing to send at least 3,000 Marines to Afghanistan in April to bolster efforts to hold off another expected Taliban offensive in the spring, military officials said Jan. 9. The move represents a shift in Pentagon thinking that has been slowly developing after months of repeated insistence that the U.S. was not inclined to fill the need for as many as 7,500 more troops that commanders have asked for there. Instead, Defense Secretary Robert Gates pressed NATO allies to contribute the extra forces.

pentagon weighs afghanistan surge
from thinkprogress: Defense Secretary Robert Gates is “considering sending some 3,000 additional marines to Afghanistan to boost forces ahead of a Taliban spring offensive. … Currently, there are 26,000 US troops in Afghanistan, most of them under the 40,000-strong NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.” Last year was the deadliest for U.S. troops in Afghanistan since the 2001 invasion.