U.K. may send 1,000 to Afghanistan

LONDON, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Britain may provide up to 1,000 more troops in response to a call from the U.S. and NATO commander for more troops in Afghanistan, senior officials said.

The British Army is drawing up plans for the troops, which would raise the number of British troops deployed in Afghanistan to about 10,000, the Times of London reported. After the United States, Britain has the second largest force among NATO allies in Afghanistan. U.S. strength is expected to reach 68,000 by this year.

In a confidential assessment report to U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates last month and currently under review by President Barack Obama, obtained by The Washington Post, U.S. and NATO commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal has sought more troops within a year to defeat the Taliban insurgency.

"Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the near-term (next 12 months) -- while Afghan security capacity matures -- risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible," McChrystal's assessment said.

The Times of London report recalled a similar surge in troop strength in Iraq, which helped gain the upper hand over the insurgents there. The Times report said under the McChrystal plan, NATO would be asked to send up to 30,000 additional troops.

The British plan would be presented to Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Defense Secretary Bob Ainsworth once the McChrystal plan is disclosed, the newspaper said.