In an indication of the military's optimistic view, General John Abizaid, the commander of all US forces in the Middle East and Central Asia, said last week that an Army battalion of several hundred soldiers that was to deploy to Afghanistan this summer has been called off. Instead the unit will be on call in the US in case of an emergency.
"We're pretty confident that we're moving in a good direction there," Abizaid said.
The movement is not quick, however.
During a visit to Afghanistan in April, US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was told by the top commander there at the time, Lieutenant General David Barno, that the capabilities of the Afghan police ranged from "pretty good to extraordinarily bad."
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