By Prensa Latina
Berlin : Germany has rejected the unusually strongly worded demand by the US government to send troops and helicopters to southern Afghanistan, where Taliban guerrilla groups play an active role.
German government spokesperson Ulrich Wilhelm said on Friday they would not change the order by the Bundestag (Congress) on the German mission in Afghanistan.
Munich daily Soedeutsche Zeitung and weekly Der Spiegel informed of a letter sent by US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates demanding that Germany send another 3,200 soldiers, including helicopters and paratroopers, to southern Afghanistan by the autumn.
German Foreign Affairs Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier reiterated that the land action of the German Army is reduced to northern Afghanistan and the capital, Kabul, which are zones with less bellcose activity.
Gates’ letter, addressed to his German counterpart Franz-Josef Jung, surprised the German government since this topic was absent from the recent meetings of German Federal Counsellor Angela Merkel and US officials.
The letter by Robert Gates was also sent to France, which is also reluctant to send soldiers to great conflict zones in the south of Afghanistan.