Change of Australian forces in Afghanistan
Updated
Australia's Defence Force says it's planning to phase out Australian soldiers as security enforcers in Afghanistan.
Commander of First Brigade, Brigadier Michael Crause, says the withdrawal of his troops from Iraq has seen an increase in training but it's only a matter of time before they're deployed to another conflict area.
He says troops based in the northern Australian city of Darwin are expected to be deployed to Afghanistan within the next six months.
"The troop numbers will not increase but the composition of the force we send in will change slightly," Brigadier Crause said.
"We're going to send in a mentoring liaison team specifically to train up the Afghani army specifically so they can take over the security role instead of us."
