A Canadian spokesperson for the International Security Assistance Force said Wednesday that under a new directive, Afghan soldiers must be involved in all operations by ISAF members.
Brig.-Gen Richard Blanchette told reporters in Kandahar that Afghan forces have been proving their merit in number of roles.
"The Afghan National Army has taken a lead in a lot of the operations. They are much more involved than before and this reflects their increased capacity in planning and executing and co-operating with a number of agencies," Blanchette said.
As of an ISAF tactical directive issued on Sept. 2, all ISAF commanders "will always be accompanied by Afghan national Army troops on all missions with some very few exceptions," Blanchette said.
He also said an increasing number of casualties in Afghanistan are among Afghan troops and that the tempo of fighting is likely to increase following a U.S. troop surge.
By year's end, 3,500 additional U.S. Marines will be arriving in Afghanistan, followed by an Army brigade of about 5,000 soldiers for early 2009. As many as three additional Army brigades could follow in the months after that.
Blanchette said the troop surge will strengthen the fight against the Taliban and lead to more "kinetic activity" on the ground.
He also told troops the number of attacks involving improvised explosive devices has increased by 50 per cent during the past year.
