One allied official said that even in a worst-case scenario, the readiness of their forces should be only marginally affected. In addition, the official said, NATO nations are looking to send more medical staff to Afghanistan to help protect and treat troops deployed there. One Defense Department official said that the new measures were also intended to stop the spread of the virus via troops coming into Afghanistan from Europe. There are other reasons to hold off on any rotations of European troops in and out of Afghanistan. There are at least 22 confirmed coronavirus cases in Afghanistan, but testing is extremely limited and thousands of people from Iran, where the virus has spread and infected thousands, enter Afghanistan’s porous western reaches daily.

Source: New York Times March 18, 2020 14:35 UTC