"Surge" for Afghanistan - numbers, yes; same strategy? Not likely

SecDef is making plans to beef up troop numbers in Afghanistan, regardless of the expected transition team and their new policies:

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said yesterday that he supports a fresh troop buildup in Afghanistan -- officially estimated at more than 20,000 U.S. troops in the next 12 to 18 months -- to fight a growing insurgency and to safeguard the 2009 Afghan elections. But he stressed that in the long run the conflict should be 'Afghanistan's war.'
'The violence is up,' Gates said. 'It's clear there is a need for more [troops] to try to deal with this increased security problem,' he told reporters traveling with him to a meeting of defense leaders in Canada.
Gates said he intends to meet the requests of top U.S. commanders in Afghanistan for an increase of four more combat brigades and an aviation brigade, as well as thousands of support troops -- a total reinforcement of 'well north of 20,000' in the coming year and a half, said Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell.
The troops would deploy primarily to eastern Afghanistan along the Pakistan border, where the 3rd Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division is headed in January, as well as to southern Afghanistan, where the Taliban insurgency is based.

By: Brant