The NATO summit in Strasbourg ended on 4 April with the European members of the alliance agreeing to send 5,000 extra troops and other personnel to Afghanistan.rnThe European pledges provided political relief to US President Barack Obama, after his decision to send 21,000 new US troops to the country this year and with the prospect of another 10,000 more to come.rnObama had argued for an increase in European forces to help the US shoulder the burden of stabilising Afghanistan.rnHe described the commitments given by Europe as a "strong downpayment on the future of our mission".rnWhile some of the troops had been pledged before the summit, leading to criticism from sections of the media, the commitments exceeded most expectations and meant that the alliance ended its 60th anniversary summit on a positive note.
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