British PM commits 500 additional troops to Afghanistan

Britain announced on Monday it would commit 500 extra troops to Afghanistan, bringing its total deployment to 10,000. The announcement comes a day before U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to bring U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan to around 100,000 by committing another 30,000 troops. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said his country’s decision to bolster Britain’s military presence was based on “national security” concerns, adding that “for a safe Britain, we need a safe Afghanistan.” Still, despite the increases by the two biggest contributors to the Afghan mission, the number of additional troops is expected to fall short of the 40,000 recently requested by U.S. Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

New York Times