Poland Pledges 1,000 Extra Troops To Assist NATO Forces in Afghanistan

Poland is rushing forward the deployment of more than 1,000 extra troops to Afghanistan to assist hard-pressed British and allied troops.

The Polish defense minister, Radosław Sikorski, pledged yesterday that the troops, including a battalion of the country's best soldiers, would arrive in February, six months earlier than planned.

The deployment means that coalition forces serving in the perilous south of Afghanistan will soon be able to call on a rescue force of 500 Polish paratroopers, trained to fly in by helicopter to support units that are surrounded. Mr. Sikorski told the Daily Telegraph that the men would be offered as an airborne rapid reaction reserve force to the commanders of the International Security Assistance Force. The paratroopers will be joined by special-forces troops as well as officers for ISAF's new headquarters in Kabul

They will be offered without any of the "caveats" that hobble troops from nations like Germany, Belgium, or Sweden. Some European troops covered by caveats are not allowed to leave their bases, are banned from taking part in combat missions, or are confined to relatively safe areas.

Poland, the largest nation of what has been called "New Europe," hopes to set a "good example" to the richer NATO members from "Old Europe" by offering its forces without restrictions. The rescue battalion will be based around the elite 18th Bielski Air Assault Battalion.

Source:nysun.com