Afghanistan hopeful of extra US cash to fund security

[alp227]

Source: The Guardian

Afghanistan is confident the US will stump up billions of extra dollars for its army and police on top of the main chunk of a $4.1bn (£2.6bn) annual budget that is expected to be sealed at a Nato summit this month, an Afghan diplomat has said.

With foreign combat troops already heading home, and all due to be all gone by the end of 2014, there is little hope the impoverished country will be able to hold off the hardened Taliban insurgents without outside financial help.

Nato nations fighting in Afghanistan have informally agreed that they will top up $500m of Afghan government cash to reach $4.1bn annually, the amount western diplomats and the Afghan government say is sufficient to support 228,000 soldiers and police.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/may/15/afghanistan-us-cash-security?cat=world&type=article

[Laurian]

1. Ugh. More money that could be used here will go down the drain.

[gratuitous]

2. After spending a decade making the rubble bounce

We should give every man, woman and child in Afghanistan about a million dollars each for all the misery we've inflicted on their country, from introducing, financing and arming the Taliban during the Soviet Union's ill-advised attempt at conquest through to the latest debacle of murder, torture, rape and plunder.

[lark]

3. Please don't do it, Uncle Sam

No more money on rebuilding another country while ours is being destroyed for the working class.