Guardian: Barack Obama’s war: the final push in Afghanistan

Posted by Kendall Harmon

Barack Obama is to set an ambitious timetable for the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, with the first troops pulling out by July 2011. The announcement is aimed at countering US public fears that the country is being sucked into a Vietnam-style morass.

Reflecting the increased sense of urgency, Obama is to speed deployment of an extra 30,000 American troops to Afghanistan within the next six months – a much faster timetable than the 12 to 18 months that had been briefed by US officials up until today.

The 30,000 figure is lower than requested by the US commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, but the Obama administration is hoping that other Nato countries will make up the difference. A senior administration official said the Nato secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, will announce the deployment of extra troops on Friday.

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Filed under: * Economics, Politics • Defense, National Security, Military • Foreign Relations • Politics in General • Office of the President • President Barack Obama • War in Afghanistan

5 Comments
Posted December 1, 2009 at 5:00 pm [Printer Friendly] [Print w/ comments]



1. Bart Hall (Kansas, USA) wrote:

If he used the word “victory” anywhere, I missed it. The bad guys also now know that if they can hang on for another 19 months ... they’ve got it. A reprise of the Carter presidency is increasingly looking like the best case scenario.

December 1, 8:48 pm | [comment link]
2. Fr. Dale wrote:

Bart, I think he used the phrase, “get the job done”, however that is defined as we are leaving in a year and a half.

December 1, 11:07 pm | [comment link]
3. Br_er Rabbit wrote:

It looks like Obama has made all the right moves to get from congress the support he needs to prosecute this war, and perhaps even some support kicked in from NATO. There are plenty of openings for politicians to gripe about, but there will be little to no support to cut him off at the knees. As Commander in Chief, so far I would give him a passing grade.

December 1, 11:38 pm | [comment link]
4. Fr. Dale wrote:

Br_er Rabbit,
Is your passing grade norm referenced or criterion referenced. Is it from A-F or just pass fail?

December 1, 11:41 pm | [comment link]
5. Br_er Rabbit wrote:

I’d give him a C.
His final grade, of course will come only from hindsight.

December 1, 11:45 pm | [comment link]
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