Obama to ask NATO for more troops: diplomat

U.S. President Obama will ask NATO allies to contribute up to10,000 new troops to theInternational Security Assistance Forcein Afghanistan when he delivers a prime-timespeech Tuesday night, according to diplomats.

A European official told The Associated Press thatthe troopnumber between 5,000 and 10,000 was included in an official NATO document Washington sent out ahead of Obama's speech from West Point, N.Y.

NATO's force in Afghanistannow stands atabout 40,000 troops.

Canada, a NATO country, is not likely to contribute troops. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has repeatedly said that he will adhere to a motion passed in Parliament and not extend Canada's military mission beyond 2011.

Obama, who will use the TV speech to unveil his new strategyfor Afghanistan, is expected to announce the United States willsend 30,000additional troops to Afghanistan on an accelerated timetable.

Hewill also declarethat troops willstart being withdrawn in July 2011, White House officials confirmed.

While Obama intends for troops to begin leaving Afghanistan in 19 months,one official said the president will notoffer a clear date for the end of the war.

The primary mission of the additional forces will be to target the Taliban-led insurgency and protect the Afghan population, as well as improve thetraining and mentoring ofAfghan security forces, the officials said.

Theadditional troops will arrive as early as Christmas, and it's expected all forces will be in place by summer.

The escalationover thenext year will put U.S. troop strength in Afghanistan at 100,000, at an annual cost of about $75 billion US.

Canada's military mission to Afghanistan began soon after the attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. The current mission in Kandahar, which began at the end of 2006, includes 2,800 troops focused around an infantry battle group.

Since 2002, 133 Canadian soldiers have been killed serving in the Afghanistan mission, resulting in the highest per-capita death rate among foreign armies in Afghanistan. One diplomat and two aid workers have also been killed.

Mixed reactions

Obama'snew Afghanistan planis generating mixed reactions from bothpoliticians and citizens.

Despite the president's earlier order to deploy 21,000 troops, the war in Afghanistanhas worsened.Less than half of Americans support another troop increase, suggested aGallup poll of more than 1,000 peoplein November.

Outside the White House onTuesday, a small band of anti-war demonstrators protested the possibility of a troop surge.

Members of Obama's own party are at odds with the president over his costly strategy. Powerful Democrats, including Carl Levin andCongressmanJohn Larson, are pushing Obama for a war tax to pay for theadditional troops.

Meanwhile, Obama has found some support from Republicans, including South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

"From my point of view, the president is correct in assessing that Afghanistan is a war that must be won," Graham said.