WASHINGTON - More troops and sophisticated equipment are needed to bolster Afghanistan's security forces, but it is not clear whether more US troops will be deployed there, US and Afghan defense officials said Tuesday.

US soldiers from 3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 10th Mountain Division, hammer in extra poles to secure their tent at Firebase Wilderness in Gardez province. The United States is urging NATO allies to lift restrictions on the use of their forces in Afghanistan, casting it as matter of allied solidarity, a senior State Department official said.[AFP]

Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry told Pentagon reporters that US officials will wait until after next week's NATO summit in Latvia to see how many troops other countries plan to provide before deciding if more US forces must be sent to Afghanistan.

"I think it will be best at this point to wait and see what NATO is able to provide," Eikenberry said. "There's more meetings that are taking place on the military staff. And this is very high on their agenda."

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