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McCain: Plan to lose Dutch in Afghanistan

The U.S. “ought to plan” for a 2,000-troop shortfall in Afghanistan because the Netherlands will likely withdraw its forces by August, Sen. John McCain said Monday.

The shortfall came into focus at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in light of the Dutch government’s collapse Saturday due to the war in Afghanistan’s unpopularity in the Netherlands. Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende could not find enough support to extend the presence of Dutch troops in Afghanistan beyond an already planned August deadline.

Under questioning by McCain, R-Ariz., Defense Undersecretary Michelle Flournoy said “we will have to see” whether the next Dutch government will agree to send troops to augment NATO’s plans to drive the Taliban insurgency from southern Afghanistan in coming months. McCain fired back that the U.S. should plan for their withdrawal, since the government’s collapse was caused by the war’s unpopularity.

“We might as well face up to the fact … that the Dutch are leaving,” McCain said. “That’s why their government collapsed. … I’m grateful for their participation. I have great sympathy for the losses they sustained. But we have to deal with the realities of what the actual allied contribution is going to be and very frankly, Madame Secretary, to think that they are going to make up that difference is very different from the realities of their domestic political situation.”

Flournoy and Marine Lt. Gen. John Paxton, director of strategic plans and policy for the Joint Staff, said they are seeking a variety of ways to sustain coalition troop levels in Afghanistan, including reaching out to nations that are not a part of NATO. Flournoy cited the current presence of Australian troops in Afghanistan and South Korea’s willingness to help with reconstruction as examples.

About 1,950 Dutch troops are deployed to Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, commanded by U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal. The Dutch mission started in 2006 and already has been extended twice.