Berlin, November 16: A helicopter convoy carrying German Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg came under fire from the ground during a recent surprise visit to troops in the area, his ministry said on Sunday.
None of the three helicopters in the convoy were hit during the attack, which happened on Friday after the minister visited German soldiers in the northern area of Kunduz, a spokesman said, confirming earlier reports.
On his two-day trip, his first to the region, zu Guttenberg held talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak.
He also met US Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of the 100,000-strong international force in Afghanistan.
On the second day of the visit, Berlin announced it would send 120 more soldiers to Afghanistan to add to its contingent of around 4,300 already on the ground.
The extra infantry company will arrive in mid-January in Kunduz, Defense Ministry spokesman Steffen Moritz told reporters.
Germany’s Parliament has capped at 4,500 the number of German soldiers that can be sent to take part in the mission, which is highly unpopular in the country. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Sunday the United States has no long-term stake in Afghanistan and its primary aim is to defeat Al-Qaeda there.
“We’re not interested in staying in Afghanistan. We have no long-term stake there. We want that to be made very clear,” she told ABC news.
“We agree that our goal here is to defeat Al-Qaeda. That has been a clear goal and a mission from the president ever since he made his commitment of additional troops back in the spring.”
“And we understand that the Afghans themselves need help in order to defend themselves against the Taleban. Those are mutually reinforcing missions but our highest obligation is to the American people,” she said.
Clinton, whose interview aired two days after President Barack Obama promised a decision soon on whether to send thousands more US troops to Afghanistan, also pressured Afghan President Hamid Karzai to do more to fight corruption.
“Now we believe that President Karzai and his government can do better. We’ve delivered that message,” she said.
Obama has launched an exhaustive Afghan strategy review over whether or how to reinforce around 68,000 US troops that are fighting in Afghanistan.
—–Agencies