Brahimi Wants Germany to Intensify Afghanistan Involvement

United Nations envoy to Afghanistan Lakhdar Brahimi said in a German television interview on Thursday that Germany should expand its peacekeeping troops based in Kabul to further outlying provinces in the country. Brahimi praised Germany’s decisive role in rebuilding and stabilizing postwar Afghanistan, but said Berlin should continue with its engagement in the country. "We expect that they (the Germans) will hopefully participate in an expansion of the peacekeeping force beyond Kabul," Brahimi stressed. "I think it’s very important to improve the security situation, especially at a time when the Afghans are still building their own institutions." Brahimi’s comments come at a time when Germany is debating the very issue, but is wary of the security risks involved in sending its soldiers to remote provinces controlled by warlords and Taliban guerilla forces. Germany currently has 2,500 soldiers in Afghanistan, forming the largest contingent of the multinational International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF).