KABUL, July 29 (Xinhua) -- The massive anti-Taliban Operation Mountain Thrust will come to an end on July 31 when NATO troops assume the command in southern Afghanistan from the U.S.-led coalition forces, a NATO commander said Saturday.
"Mountain Thrust is drawing to a close, and will not continue after July 31," Lieutenant General David Richards, top commander of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), told a press conference held here Saturday.
On July 31, there will be a big ceremony in Kandahar for the command shift from coalition forces to ISAF.
Analysts say NATO and the United States intend to create a win-win situation in Afghanistan through the command shift.
On one hand, NATO would like to show its military and political strength through carrying out a more ambitious Afghan mission, on the other hand, the United States wants to reduce the high burden of its military, which has bogged down in the post-war Iraq.
Over 11,000 coalition and Afghan forces have launched Mountain Thrust since mid-May in the southern provinces of Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul, and Uruzgan, the stronghold of Taliban militants, to wipe out enemies there.
More than 700 Taliban extremists have been killed in the operation, coalition spokeswoman Tamara Laurence told Xinhua Friday.
Richards, who is from the UK army, said ISAF, which is to have 8,000 troops in volatile southern Afghanistan after taking command, will continue to "fight Taliban militants robustly" and secure the region.
"We would reaffirm that NATO is here for the long term, for as long as the Afghan government requires our assistance," he said, adding this is a "full, full commitment."
The fresh task apparently has pushed the 26-nation military alliance into what will likely be the toughest combat mission in its 57-year history, as Taliban-linked violence has killed over 70 foreign troops in Afghanistan this year.
ISAF has deployed about 10,000 troops from 36 nations in this war-weary country, most of which are staying in the relatively clam north, west and Kabul, capital of the country, to keep security there.
ISAF would have about 18,000 forces in Afghanistan after July 31 and own over 21,000 after its expansion into the east later this year, as most coalition forces would be incorporated into it.
However, the U.S. military will lead some independent special forces to hunt down chiefs of the Taliban and Al-Qaida.
NATO first took command of the UN-mandated ISAF in Afghanistan in the alliance's first mission outside the Euro-Atlantic area in August 2003, nearly two years after the U.S.-led Afghan war to topple Taliban regime in 2001. Its presence was initially limited to Kabul.
On the press conference, Richards said there is no plan now to increase ISAF troops by drawing more soldiers from outside Afghanistan, but he would order ISAF forces in other parts of Afghanistan go to the south when necessary.
He also said Afghan forces and police would have a larger number and become more powerful in the region, and would contribute a lot to security there.
He emphasized there are some operational guidelines for ISAF movements in the south: do not search houses unless it has been authorized at a high level or one has been fired on from them; get out on one's feet and when driving do so with care and courtesy..
Many Afghans have complained coalition forces have caused lots of civilian casualties in their fight against militants, and driven in a reckless way, which occasionally leads to deadly traffic accidents.
Richards said success couldn't be achieved overnight, and fresh ISAF task in southern Afghanistan would be very hard. Enditem
