Afghanistan faces $4bn defence funding shortfall

Afghanistan's security forces face a $4bn (£2.5bn) funding shortfall after 2014 – when they are supposed to take over the main responsibility for fighting the insurgency – raising questions over whether the Kabul government will have the resources to keep the Taliban at bay, the Guardian has learned.

The Afghan army and police combined currently number about 308,000, and are due to reach their peak strength of 352,000 by the end of next year. The western strategy is for the Afghan national security forces (ANSF) to take on an increasing share in the fighting, allowing the US, Britain and their allies to withdraw all their troops from combat by 2014 and focus on training and counter-terrorist operations.   Read Full