Ahead of the President's announcement, NATO's top commander yesterday promised "substantially more forces" (see UK Guardian Newspaper article below).

However many tens of thousands more troops that Obama announces will be sent, the bottom line is that he will be responsible for dramatically escalating U.S. war in the region at just about the same time, ironically, that he will receive his Nobel "Peace" Prize in December. As with President Lyndon Johnson a generation ago, Obama's war surge will make it nearly impossible to increase aid to working class families, whether in healthcare, education, housing or employment.

Many peace and justice organizations around the country are mobilizing emergency responses to the war escalation. Here in Chicago there will be an Emergency Response rally and march beginning at 5 PM at Federal Plaza (Adams and Dearborn Streets) on the day that President Obama makes the announcement of the troop surge (if the announcement is made in the evening, the Emergency Response protest will be at 5 PM on the following day).

On the Saturday following the troop surge escalation, there will be an additional rally and march at 12 noon, again at Federal Plaza (corner of Adams and Dearborn).

Here are the current sponsors of Chicago's Afghanistan Emergency Response actions:

8th Day Center for Justice
Albany Park, North Park, Mayfair Neighbors for Peace and Justice
American Friends Service Committee
ANSWER Chicago
Chicago Area CodePINK
Chicago Coalition Against War and Racism
Chicago Committee to Bring the Troops Home Now
Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights
Chicago Copwatch
Chicago Democratic Socialists of America
Chicago Labor Against the War
Chicago Socialist Party
Chicago World Can't Wait
Committee on Pilipino Issues (CPI)
Cook County Green Party
Gay Liberation Network
Generations for Peace
Hugh Spector
International Socialist Organization
International Solidarity Movement - Chicago
Logan Square Neighbors for Justice and Peace
Near West Citizens for Peace and Justice
Neighbors for Peace
News and Letters Committees
Nicaragua Solidarity Committee
North Shore Coalition for Justice, Peace and the Environment
Northwest Suburban Peace and Education Project
Pax Christi St. Gertrude
Peace Pledge
Southsiders for Peace
Tikkun Community-Chicago Chapter
We Are Change Chicago
Workers World Party

To have your organization added as a co-sponsor, please email CCAWR@aol.com

JOIN THE FACEBOOK GROUP for this event so that you will get prompt notice of when the protests will happen — go to http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=167820978446

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Published on Tuesday, November 17, 2009
by The Guardian/UK

Nato Chief Promises Afghanistan Will Get 'Substantially More Forces'

by Julian Borger, Diplomatic editor

Nato and its allies will order "substantially more forces" into battle in Afghanistan over the next few weeks, the alliance's secretary general said today.

Speaking in Edinburgh at a Nato parliamentary assembly meeting, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, said: "In a few weeks, I expect we will decide, in Nato, on the approach, and troop levels needed, to take our mission forward."

Barack Obama is expected to make a long-awaited declaration on US troop levels and strategy in the next few days. But Rasmussen pre-empted the president by predicting the alliance as a whole would pursue a broad counter-insurgency approach, requiring many more soldiers, rather than the narrower focus on counter-terrorism – such as targeting suspected jihadist leaders – advocated by the US vice-president, Joe Biden.

"I'm confident it will be a counter-insurgency approach, with substantially more forces," Rasmussen said, and promised there would soon be "new momentum" behind Nato's beleaguered Afghan mission.

His announcement follows a meeting of the North Atlantic Council last week, in which the alliance's member states broadly endorsed a strategy proposed by the US commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, focused on protecting the civilian population and bolstering the Afghan government.

Gordon Brown said today that 10 Nato member states would be prepared to send extra troops. He has pledged 500 more British soldiers, bringing the UK force to 9,500. Brown said the alliance could send as many as 5,000 alongside the US deployment announced by Obama.

Slovakia said it would raise its troop contribution from 250 to 500 today. The rest of the new forces will come from Nato members such as Turkey and Germany, which is expected to announce the size of its deployment in the new year. Others will come from Nato's partners in the International Security Assistance Force. South Korea will send hundreds of troops to create a new "provincial reconstruction team", probably in Parwan province, north of Kabul. Mongolia is also expected to send a significant contingent.

In another speech to the Nato parliament today, David Miliband called for a new emphasis on building up local government and traditional councils. The foreign secretary noted that the average Afghan government budget for each province was less than $1m (£600,000).

He said there should be more resources pumped into local government which should in turn help recreate representative shuras – traditional councils.

"They can provide a forum for a political debate, and, under carefully controlled conditions, provide the re-entry mechanisms for insurgents seeking reintegration," he said.

Miliband restated British government support for a policy of "flipping" Taliban footsoldiers by offering better livelihoods, followed by overtures to more senior militants. "Once reintegration gains momentum, and the insurgency is stating to fray or crumble, we will need to support President [Hamid] Karzai in reaching out to those high-level commanders that can be persuaded to renounce al-Qaida and pursue their goals peacefully within the constitutional framework," he said.

Western officials predict that one of the most difficult parts of the strategy will be working with the re-elected Karzai government, which Brown has described as "a byword for corruption". Afghanistan was today declared the second most corrupt country in the world, behind Somalia. The ranking, published by a watchdog group, Transparency International, showed that Afghanistan had slipped three places in its Corruption Perceptions Index over the past year, despite the huge investment and close attention of Nato and international donors. Iraq was fifth worst in the list of 180 countries.

Under intense pressure from Washington, Karzai has announced the creation of an anti-corruption commission, built on the model of the FBI. It is unclear whether there will be any role in the new institution for foreign oversight. British officials believe it should be an entirely Afghan organisation. There is a debate under way between Nato allies and the Karzai government over the creation of new international co-ordinator, or high representative, in Kabul to help ensure that reconstruction money is spent properly.

Miliband will represent Britain at Karzai's inauguration on Thursday at a ceremony that will be closed to journalists.

"Due to capacity and security reasons we cannot invite the media into the palace," a palace spokesman, Siamak Herawi said yesterday. A survey published today by Oxfam found one in five Afghans had been tortured and one in 10 imprisoned at least once since the 1979 Soviet invasion. Only 1% of those interviewed said they had received any form of compensation for their treatment. Asked about the causes of the conflict 70% of Afghans named poverty and unemployment.

© Guardian News and Media Limited 2009