Reports: Petraeus asks NATO for troops

Gen. David Petraeus is asking that NATO members contribute 2,000 more troops to the fight against the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan.

Wire services citing anonymous NATO sources reported the U.S. and NATO commander is asking for the additional foreign forces to beef up the International Security Assistance Force, particularly in the area of training Afghan security forces.

Word of the request, which reportedly precedes Petraeus’ command, according to the Associated Press, comes before President Obama meets with NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Tuesday at the White House.

It also comes as NATO allies are anxious to wind down their contributions to the coalition effort in the nine-year-old war, and as NATO forces are increasingly coming under attack. A Reuters tally Monday found the number of foreign troops killed this year in Afghanistan has reached at least 500,
compared with 521 in all of 2009.

Washington targeted July 2011 to begin winding down the troop surge and drawdown the U.S. military presence.