NATO to maintain forces in Afghanistan after 2017

NATO is expected to maintain troops in Afghanistan going into 2017, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced Wednesday. 

The U.S. was originally scheduled to draw down to an embassy presence in Kabul by the end of this year, but President Obama in October decided to keep 5,500 U.S. troops in the country going into 2017.

{mosads}The NATO decision to keep troops in Afghanistan after the end of the year came during a two-day ministerial with defense ministers in Brussels that ended Wednesday. 

NATO’s decision means two additional military hubs in Afghanistan will remain open, according to a senior NATO official. 

U.S. troops are slated to maintain a presence in Kabul, Bagram, Jalalabad and Kandahar. NATO’s presence would expand that to western and northern Afghanistan, according to the official. 

NATO’s continued presence would also allow the U.S.-led coalition more flexibility, in the case that President Obama adjusted U.S. force levels again. The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Nicholson, recently submitted his recommendations for force levels there, which are currently being reviewed. 

Carter said he’s heard from NATO members that it will also provide the $5 billion needed to sustain the Afghan National Defense Security Forces at current levels through 2020.