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Brussels (dpa) - The US has assured its NATO partners that it will not force an end to the alliance's mission in Afghanistan.
According to General Scott Miller, the US capabilities necessary for the "Resolute Support" mission should continue to be made available regardless of the new plans for troop reductions, reported NATO diplomats in Brussels.
Accordingly, the allies are likely to have to make slight adjustments to their own troop strength.
Most recently, the Bundeswehr was involved in the NATO training mission for the Afghan government's security forces with almost 1,300 soldiers.
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The administration of outgoing US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday last week, without consulting the Allies, that it would reduce the US force in Afghanistan to 2,500 soldiers by January 15.
As a result, there was initially great uncertainty in NATO about what the decision to deploy as an alliance would mean.
The reason was that the US armed forces are currently providing capabilities that other NATO countries cannot replace in the short term.
These include, for example, those that enable rapid air support and rescue operations for wounded soldiers in the event of attacks on troops.
According to official information, around 4,500 US soldiers were most recently deployed in Afghanistan.
The background to the US troop withdrawal plans is an agreement that the Trump administration signed with the militant Islamist Taliban.
Among other things, it holds out the prospect of a withdrawal of all US and NATO forces by the end of April 2021.
In return, the Taliban have committed to peace talks with the government in Kabul and promised a significant reduction in violence in the country.
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According to many of the US NATO partners, the Taliban have not yet adequately fulfilled their commitments, which is why the complete withdrawal of all troops should not be planned for the time being.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg recently announced that a meeting of defense ministers next February would decide on the future of the NATO mission.
According to dpa information, US General Miller briefed representatives of the allies at a meeting of the North Atlantic Council about plans to further reduce the American troop strength.
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD), among others, had previously been very critical of the announcements from Washington and urged them to provide further information quickly.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201126-99-479495 / 2