Top NATO and United Nations officials signaled today they may request more international troops to join American forces in Afghanistan as the top U.S. defense official said President Barack Obama is still weeks away from deciding on a shift in war strategy, AP reported. At a Friday meeting of 28 NATO defense ministers, Pentagon chief Robert Gates said allies indicated a willingness to boost military and civilian aid _ even as Obama remains undecided over whether to escalate U.S. troop strength to counter Afghan insurgents. «I do believe that additional international troops will be needed in the future,» agreed Kai Eide, the top U.N. official in Afghanistan. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen cited «broad support» from defense ministers to stick with a war strategy devised by American commander Gen. Stanley McChrystal that calls for tens of thousands more combat troops _ including as many as 80,000 Americans.
