US to train Georgian troops for Afghan mission: Pentagon

WASHINGTON: The US military on Friday said it will launch a training mission in Georgia to help a battalion prepare for deployment to Afghanistan, a move that risks aggravating relations with Russia.A team of US Marines will leave in the next few days to begin training a 750-strong infantry battalion that heads to Afghanistan in 2010, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman told reporters.The training, which formally starts next month, will be designed "to get them ready for their spring 2010 deployment and to ensure they're able to operate alongside ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) partners," said Whitman.The NATO-led ISAF coalition comprises more than 100,000 troops, with about 62,000 forces from the United States.The number of Marines in the training contingent will fluctuate but will number as many as 60-70 instructors, Whitman said.The first influx of Marines will arrive in Georgia beginning on August 15th, said State Department spokesman PJ Crowley.The training program "will commence on September 1st to prepare that Georgian battalion... for service in Afghanistan," said Crowley.A similar US training effort for troops headed to Iraq was suspended last year when Georgia waged a brief war with Russian forces over South Ossetia.About 2,000 Georgian troops were deployed in Iraq from August 2003 but were rushed back in a conflict that saw Russia crush the ex-Soviet state's US-backed military.Whitman said the training mission was solely focused on the Afghan mission but Moscow has accused Washington of meddling in the region and rearming Georgia.Russia views expanding NATO influence in ex-Soviet states near Russian borders as a major security threat.Moscow and Western governments are in intensifying competition for influence in Georgia due to its vital location astride a geographical corridor that could be used to transport energy supplies from Central Asia directly to Western markets.