The top US general for Afghanistan today expressed confidence the US-led NATO mission will succeed but predicted that violent fighting will increase as more troops arrive in the country and move into areas held by the Taliban, according to dpa. "We will encounter increased violence as our combined security forces expand into Taliban-controlled areas," General Stanley McChrystal told reporters at the White House Monday. McChrystal's comments came as Afghan President Hamid Karzai and much of his cabinet were in Washington for a series of high level discussions with US officials this week. Karzai is scheduled to meet with President Barack Obama on Wednesday. The United States is in the middle of a massive surge of US troops into the country that will be complete by the end of summer and expand the US presence to more than 100,000 soldiers. The week's meetings at the White House, State Department and Pentagon are designed to discuss a broad range of issues and challenges facing the Afghan government as the US-and NATO-led mission tries to fight off the Taliban insurgency. The meetings will address security, building the economy, improving the Kabul government's capabilities and countering corruption. "Seeing clearly the challenges in front of us, I have confidence that our campaign plan will succeed," McChrystal said.
