MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The NATO mission to train, advise and assist Afghan security forces was launched on January 1, 2015 as a follow-up on the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) combat mission, which completed at the end of 2014. NATO foreign chiefs agreed in December 2015 to sustain the RSM presence during 2016.
"I was pleased today to hear from NATO counterparts the good news that they, too, intend to provide funding to sustain the ANDSF through 2020, like the United States does," Carter said.
On Thursday, US media reported that the Obama administration would give US forces broader authority to advise conventional Afghan troops with missions the same way they have been assisting Afghan Special Forces personnel.
Afghanistan is struggling with a political, economical and social crisis as it attempts to tackle the Taliban's insurgency. The situation in the country has worsened in recent months, with the Taliban launching offensives in major cities.
