US expands special operations forces around world
The Obama administration has significantly expanded the deployment of US
military special operations forces around the world against al-Qaeda and
other groups, according to officials.
By Alex Spillius in Washington
Published: 5:34PM BST 04 Jun 2010
The increased use of secret units has now extended to 75 countries,
compared to about 60 at the beginning of last year when President Barack
Obama took office.
In addition to units that have spent years in the Philippines and
Colombia, US special operations teams were also operating in Yemen and
elsewhere in the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia.
Such units were deployed as a front-line counterterrorism weapon for the
United States after the September 11, 2001, attacks. But despite
rhetoric about pursuing "soft power", Mr Obama has made these forces a
far more integrated part of his global security strategy.
The report comes amid criticism from the United Nations about the
secrecy of CIA drone attacks on terror targets in Pakistan, and
complaints from liberal supporters of the president that his anti-terror
policies follow George W Bush's too closely.
The president has asked Congress for a 5.7 per cent increase in the
special operations budget for 2011, for a total of $6.3 billion (£4.3
billion).
Special operations commanders have also become a far more regular
presence at the White House than they were during the Bush
administration.
"We have a lot more access," one military official told the Washington
Post. "They are talking publicly much less but they are acting more.
They are willing to get aggressive much more quickly."
US officials said last month General David Petraeus, who oversees the
wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, issued a secret order in 2009 paving the
way for an escalation of covert operations across the Middle East and
the Horn Africa.
Http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/7804251/US-
expands-special-operations-forces-around-world.html
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