UNIPATH STAFF
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has reinforced its troop presence in Afghanistan as part of the 39-nation coalition battling terrorists intent on destabilizing the country.
For much of the past decade, the UAE has stationed about 200 Soldiers in Afghanistan, but recently agreed to send more troops to help train elite Afghan recruits and support counterterrorism missions. Some of the Emirati forces will be based at NATO headquarters.
The coalition, part of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission, has been pressuring the Taliban to lay down its arms, renounce terrorism and negotiate a peace settlement with the Afghan government in Kabul.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has sought to improve relations with Middle Eastern and Islamic countries, and the deployment of Emirati troops — combined with a prospective increase in Qatari troop levels — is part of that diplomatic engagement. Source: Reuters