‘‘Hopefully by the mid to latter part of 2013 we’ll be able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advise and assist role,’’ he said. He added that this ‘‘doesn’t mean we’re not going to be combat-ready,’’ but rather that the US and other international forces will no longer be in ‘‘the formal combat role we’re in now.’’
He said no decisions have been made about how many US troops would be required to remain there once the combat role has ended. He suggested, however, that large reductions, below the 68,000 troop level projected for this September, were unlikely in the months immediately after the shift. The US now has about 91,000 troops there as part of the International Security Assistance Force. The fact that much military work will remain after 2013 ‘‘demands that we have a strong presence there,’’ he said.
Although Panetta made no mention of it, US Marines in Afghanistan already are making that transition out of a combat role. They are operating in Helmand province in southwestern Afghanistan, where the Taliban have been greatly weakened, and are on track to reduce their numbers significantly this year. Panetta’s remarks indicated that this switch into a support role will be applied across Afghanistan, assuming no major setbacks against the Taliban and continued progress in training Afghan forces.
Many US forces already are training and advising Afghan forces.
Marine Gen. John Allen, the overall commander of international forces in Afghanistan, has been talking publicly since last fall about converting the military role from combat to what he has called ‘‘security assistance.’’ But Panetta went further in identifying mid- to late-2013 as the target for completing this conversion countrywide.
