World

President to Announce 10,000 Troops Out of Afghanistan by End of 2011, Afghan Forces on Their Own By 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is expected to withdraw roughly 10,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan this year, with one brigade of about 5,000 forces leaving this summer and a second brigade of similar size coming home by the end of the year, a senior U.S. defense official said Tuesday.

Obama is also weighing a timetable for bringing home the 20,000 other troops he ordered to Afghanistan as part of his December 2009 decision to send reinforcements to reverse the Taliban’s battlefield momentum. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the plans before Obama’s formal announcement Wednesday.

Ahead of that announcement, Obama called Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the White House Tuesday for an Afghanistan strategy session. Aides have said Obama wants to ensure that the drawdown set to begin next month puts the U.S. on a path toward giving Afghans control of their own security by 2014.

Obama was given a range of options for the withdrawal last week by Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan. The military favors a gradual reduction in troops but other advisers are advocating a significant decrease in the coming months.

The president has said he favors a “significant” withdrawal, his advisers have not quantified that statement.

At a democratic fundraiser in Washington Monday night, Obama said that by the end of the year, “we will be transitioning in Afghanistan to turn over more and more security to the Afghan people.”

Following the announcement on the drawdown, Obama will visit troops Thursday at Fort Drum, the upstate New York military base that is home to the 10th Mountain Division, one of the most frequently deployed divisions to Afghanistan and Iraq.

While much of the attention is focused on how many troops will leave Afghanistan next month, the more telling aspects of Obama’s decision center on what happens after July, particularly how long the president plans to keep the surge forces in the country.

Military commanders want to keep as many of those forces in Afghanistan for as long as possible, arguing that too fast a withdrawal could undermine the fragile security gains in the fight against the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan, the al-Qaida training ground for the Sept. 11 attacks. There are also concerns about pulling out a substantial number of U.S. forces as the heightened summer fighting season gets under way.

Retiring Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said he believes the initial drawdown should be “modest.”

But other advisers backed a more significant withdrawal that starts in July and proceeds steadily through the following months. That camp believes the slow yet steady security gains in Afghanistan, combined with the death of Osama bin Laden and U.S. success in dismantling much of the al-Qaida network in the country, give the president an opportunity to make larger reductions this year.

Gates, who is retiring from the Pentagon next week, has said Obama’s decision needs to incorporate domestic concerns about the war in Afghanistan into his decision on drawing down American troops there.

“It goes without saying that there are a lot of reservations in the Congress about the war in Afghanistan and our level of commitment. There are concerns among the American people who are tired of a decade of war,” Gates said during a news conference at the State Department Tuesday.

Twenty-seven senators, Democrats as well as Republicans, sent Obama a letter last week pressing for a shift in Afghanistan strategy and major troop cuts.

“Given our successes, it is the right moment to initiate a sizable and sustained reduction in forces, with the goal of steadily redeploying all regular combat troops,” the senators wrote. “The costs of prolonging the war far outweigh the benefits.”

Arizona Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, differed with that assessment. He told ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday that he agreed with Gates in hoping the withdrawal would be “modest.”

“I believe that one more fighting season and we can get this thing pretty well wrapped up,” McCain said.

There is broad public support for starting to withdraw U.S. troops. According to an Associated Press-GfK poll last month, 80 percent of Americans say they approve of Obama’s decision to begin withdrawal of combat troops in July and end U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan by 2014. Just 15 percent disapprove.

Obama has tripled the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan since taking office, bringing the total there to about 100,000. The 30,000-troop surge he announced at the end of 2009 came with the condition that he would start bringing forces home in July 2011.

The president took months to settle on the surge strategy. This time around, aides say the process is far less formal and Obama is far more knowledgeable about the situation in Afghanistan than he was in 2009, his first year in office.

With the troop withdrawal set to begin next month, U.S. officials in Afghanistan said Tuesday they will shift their development priorities from quick-impact stability programs run by international agencies to infrastructure and economic growth projects that can be run by Afghans over the long term.

Officials speaking at a background briefing at the Kabul embassy said hydroelectric dams, roads, gas fields, mines, and increased agricultural production will be the focus of their efforts as the end of 2014 approaches, the president’s promised deadline for the withdrawal of all combat troops.

There are also indications that the administration, having learned from the U.S. experience in Iraq, will set deadline dates for the drawdown as it progresses, in order to keep pressure on the Afghans and give Congress mileposts.

With Iraq as a blueprint, commanders will need time to figure out what they call “battlefield geometry” – what types of troops are needed where. Those could include trainers, intelligence officers, special operations forces, various support units – from medical and construction to air transport – as well as combat troops.

Much of that will depend on where the Afghan security forces are able to take the lead, as well as the state of the insurgency. Part of the debate will also require commanders to determine the appropriate ratio of trainers versus combat troops.

Comments (85)

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  • AmericanGeekGurl
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:10pm

    1 – the july 2011 withdrawal date…this may be the first “promise” he’s actually kept [besides the "fundamental change of America" & skyrocketing energy costs, that is]

    2 – i guess the taliban made nice @ the table and gave BO some promises of their own…nothing this guy has to say is worth my time – he’s a liar and a thug, and he’s NOT as BRILLIANT as the MSM swore he was – okay, maybe he IS smarter than they are, collectively, but he’s certainly not the glib genius he was made out to be [again, with the MSM] — we’d save a lot of time if he just turned the teleprompter toward the camera & let us read it for ourselves and/or post it online. he doesn’t add much to the delivery, except for that strange cadence of his…

    Report Post » AmericanGeekGurl  
  • DDD
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:06pm

    As much as I hate being involved in all 5 of the “wars” we are – I would hate even more to see the lives already lost for no reason (like Vietnam and Korea). If the military experts (not the sloths in WA) feel that a slower withdrawal is better – I’m with them. Get ‘em home, but don’t let the Taliban take back Afganistan.

    Report Post »  
  • Bennie Franklin
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 10:23am

    The war was never meant to be won. Pull them all out now

    Report Post »  
  • Richard Compton
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:40am

    You don’t tell your enemy what you are planning, ever!

    Report Post »  
  • rabblechat
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:37am

    US out by 2014; Taliban, Muslim brotherhood or some other yet unknown fundamentalist group in by 2015. What a waste of blood and treasure.

    Report Post » rabblechat  
    • bjbrain
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 4:35pm

      It does not matter when we pull out, the people over there want to be an Islamic state under Sharia Law. It has truly been a waste of blood and treasure.

      Report Post »  
    • Teaparty-grammy
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 5:46pm

      Trying to do anything for a bunch of Islamic extremist wannabes who just want to kill us anyhow is a waste of blood and treasure in my mind.

      Report Post » Teaparty-grammy  
  • Ghandi was a Republican
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:19am

    It is astounding that anything that comes out of obama’s mouth is even noteworthy, let alone news! Any grain of truth is more a matter of future happenstance than commitment.

    Report Post » Ghandi was a Republican  
  • Lloyd Drako
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:07am

    Everyone agrees: “Bring them home as quickly as possible.”

    They just disagree on what “as quickly as possible” means: as soon as transportation can be arranged, or as soon as Afghanistan has a government worth defending and an army capable of defending it?

    But, please, no timelines, no announcing “20,000 will be out by the end of 2011″ or whatever.

    Actions speak louder than words, especially when the words tell the enemy exactly when to expect withdrawals.

    And let’s not delude ourselves: the end result will be either tribal anarchy or some sort of theocratic regime, Taliban or otherwise.

    I would not want to be opening a hair salon in Kabul right now.

    Report Post » Lloyd Drako  
  • TexasStu
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:54am

    We have been there too long. We should have taken Hussein out and let the country fend for itself. They caused the mess by not letting the UN do the proper inspections shooting at our planes in the no fly zone and about the weapons of mass destruction I know many ammunition dumps have been found with thousands of tons of weapons so let them clean it up. As far as Afghanistan the big Ben is dead get out. And Libya we should not even be there that is a civil war and NOT OUR BUSINESS! What we should be doing is every time the Palestinians send a rocket into Israel we need to send a cruise missile into the heart of Palestine. But instead we chastise Israel, how upside down we are in this world. If we do not wake up all of us will have to get up at dawn and bow to the east in prayer.

    Report Post » TexasStu  
  • slvrserfr
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:23am

    I’ll believe it when I see it, he’s not referred to as the liar in chief for nothing.

    Report Post »  
  • teddrunk
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 7:45am

    Isn’t this the same President that promised transparency. The guy who promised that all bills will be posted for all to study. The guy that was going to get rid of cronyism? Isn’t this guy a liar.

    Report Post »  
  • Flotilla Hunter
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 7:02am

    Actually bring ‘em all home in the cloak of darkness…. tomorrow. Let the afghans wake up to nothing more than the bleat of a distant goat. God bless our troops.

    Report Post »  
    • teddrunk
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 7:22am

      Hey, that’s not just some goat, that’s some Muslim guys mistress.

      Report Post »  
    • Lloyd Drako
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:09am

      No, wait until US elections are a bit closer, so Americans are still euphoric that the boys are coming home, but before the bloodbath begins.

      Report Post » Lloyd Drako  
  • LovinUSA
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 6:44am

    yeah, right.

    Report Post » LovinUSA  
  • LovinUSA
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 6:42am

    promises,promises. Do you believe this pathetic liar?

    Report Post » LovinUSA  
  • Ron_WA
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 6:42am

    People, enough w/ the “bring them home now” stuff. One cannot just wave a magic wand & poof the troops are home. The physics, logistics & operational reality requires a phased withdrawal.

    Also, don’t forget why we went in, the Taliban ran a nation state of radical Islam & fostered Islamic terrorist safe havens which allowed for recruiting, training, logistics, & a base of operations for those who would & did attack America as well as our allies.

    If we pull out too fast we only invite the revival of that reality. Do we really want to have to go back there w/in the next few years after we’ve been attacked again? I don’t.

    Yes we need out but we have to do it in a responsible way.

    Report Post » Ron_WA  
    • Lloyd Drako
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 10:28am

      Words of wisdom, but we tend to be as impetuous about getting out of wars as we are about getting into them.

      Report Post » Lloyd Drako  
    • Teaparty-grammy
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 5:25pm

      That reminds me of when Bush the First went right to the outskirts of Baghdad and stopped without going after Sadam Hussein after SH attacked Kuwait. I said at the time we would end up having to go back there under more difficult conditions because of that, and sure enough, we did.

      My biggest concern is that this will end up like one of those math problems–you know, the ones where you have chickens and foxes and a boat that will only hold two of them, and you have to get them all to the other side of the river. But at no time can the foxes outnumber the chickens, for obvious reasons. If they start withdrawing troops here and there, I fear they will leave some unit of our troops stranded in some God-forsaken outpost in Agfhanistan (and there are PLENTY of “God-forsaken outsposts there! Heck, the entire COUNTRY is a God-forsaken outpost as far as I am concerned) But I’m afraid some unit of our troops will be stranded there and be slaughtered by the “friendly locals”.

      Report Post » Teaparty-grammy  
    • 91AP
      Posted on June 24, 2011 at 9:53pm

      Which is obvious: Nuke ‘em ’til they glow, then shoot ‘em in the dark.

      Report Post »  
  • teddrunk
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 5:54am

    Who cares what Obama announces. He never stops lying anyhow.

    Report Post »  
  • NOBALONEY
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 5:00am

    Another address to the nation with another promise. I wonder if President Obama will have something else to say? Somehow he’ll use this as a campaign speech, or remind us of that disgraceful ultimatum he gave Israel.

    Report Post » NOBALONEY  
  • louise
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 4:37am

    I have some old-fashioned advice for Obama: “Don’t put off till tomorrow what can and should be done TODAY.”

    Report Post » louise  
  • the hawk
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:53am

    I’m FOR bRING HOME TROOPS NOW ! But does bring home 10,000 put the others at Risk?
    Or higher risk? I’d hate to see a higher deth toll Because 10,000 troops left !
    Henry Kissinger said he ask Truman the one thing he was most proud of , It was that we totally drfeated our enemies ! ! ! We dont fight wars with that mind set anymore ! As Micheal Sheuer said( bin laden unit)
    ” We could of won that war in 3-6 mos with the full use of our military”
    I would bring all troops home ! except speacil forces based at our billion $ air base there, who could lanch REAL attacts on the enemies as the come to get us and heavy air compaigns 20-30 thou troops, drone attacts in cross border aeras when GOOD INTELLIGENCE gives us mullah omar & the old egypitan doc !

    Report Post »  
    • Lloyd Drako
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 9:14am

      Truman? Wasn’t he the president who took the US into its first no-win, “limited” war, er, police action, in Korea?

      Report Post » Lloyd Drako  
  • calebgs83
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:17am

    Obama is getting our troops killed for political gain.

    Report Post » calebgs83  
    • GadsdenPatriot
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:27am

      He’s also killing innocent Americans and mexicans along the border for political gain.

      Report Post » GadsdenPatriot  
  • 123456789_0
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:49am

    let‘s hope a republican doesn’t get elected next then! remember how they wanted to invade iran too? and north korea? and all that crap with taiwan?

    maybe if a dem can bring us the closest to peace we’ve been since the beginning of the 20th century, it shouldn’t matter what party he belongs to or what color skin he has. bring the troops home right? stop wasting tax dollars? i’ll do it if the rest of you do! otherwise i’ll get my gun ready for the next terrorist attack.

    Report Post »  
    • GadsdenPatriot
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:12am

      Surely you jest.

      Report Post » GadsdenPatriot  
    • 123456789_0
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:32am

      crap you’re right. i didn’t go straight to an unbiased conspiracy theory. can you drum one up real quick? oh! it’s right below…

      Report Post »  
    • GadsdenPatriot
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:48am

      Ah, clearly logic evades you. I shant make the mistake of thinking you’re reasonable. I will say this, no one here has made any mention of political affiliation or the color of one’s skin. That is nothing more than a psychological projection on your part; you assume others draw conclusions based on skin color because that is the depth of YOUR intellect…racist.

      Report Post » GadsdenPatriot  
    • riseandshine
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 2:04am

      9/11 was a false flag attack.

      Report Post » riseandshine  
    • IMPEACHBHO
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:34am

      @ 123456789_0

      Wow, you are delusional!!

      Report Post » IMPEACHBHO  
    • IMPEACHBHO
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:42am

      RISEANDSHINE
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 2:04am
      9/11 was a false flag attack.
      _____________________

      Yes, and all those people in the towers and on the planes were just actors. Get it through that thick head of yours, Islamic extremists HATE the U.S. They call us the great satan, and want to kill us on site just for who we are.

      Report Post » IMPEACHBHO  
    • CO_PREPPER
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 2:18pm

      What does skin color have to do with it?

      Report Post »  
    • riseandshine
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 2:35pm

      @Impeachbho…..No, they weren’t actors….Maybe you should look up the meaning of false flag. 9/11 was a false flag operation. I didn’t want to believe it myself…9/11 was a false flag…or put another way…an inside job. That’s the truth.

      Report Post » riseandshine  
    • Michael
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 3:25pm

      riseandshine, you need a taste of reality. Put away your video games and watch the news every once in a while. Even MSNBC and Comedy Network do not agree with your assessment. And those are the two most liberal-biased and impotent news outlets I have ever seen.

      Report Post »  
    • 91AP
      Posted on June 24, 2011 at 9:49pm

      123, Name the names of the R’s who wanted invade Iran and N. Korea.
      Gadsden, no he doesn’t jest, and keep calling him Shirley.

      Report Post »  
  • nomercy63
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:44am

    i don’t trust anything these a holes tell us!

    Report Post »  
  • GadsdenPatriot
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:28am

    Don’t get too excited, he‘ll just move them to one of his other 100 wars he’s started for no reason.

    Report Post » GadsdenPatriot  
  • miles from nowhere
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:27am

    The middleeast is one big sinkhole and it is going to take some real leadership in the world to resolve the many problems and Obama is not the man. He is in way over his head and muslims know this, they do not fear him, where they did with Bush. Honesty is a virtue.

    Report Post »  
  • Country
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:27am

    Bring our troops home.

    Report Post »  
  • Robert-CA
    Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:24am

    Please bring them back safe .
    They hate us there .

    Report Post » Robert-CA  
    • thepatriotdave
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:38am

      So why wait? Bring them home now. If we refuse to fight a war to win it, then it’s not worth the fighting. Our billions used in Afghanistan can be used to secure our southern border. Think about the ‘Thanks’ we are getting now from Iraq. Their government wants us to leave Iraq tomorrow, so I say do it. However, all our expensive equipment and all of our $$$ comes back with us. Or we could just move all of our equipment to Israel so they can use it to fight off threats from their hateful neighbors.

      http://www.AMillionGoWest.com – Help us get 1 million signatures on a petition that asks Allen West to run for President in 2012.

      Report Post » thepatriotdave  
    • Laus Deo
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:46am

      The only announcement I need to hear of from the Marxist-in-Chief is his resignation.

      Report Post » Laus Deo  
    • The_Almighty_Creestof
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:54am

      Stupid! Bring them home now. This idea that we cannot until the current government or in-country security forces are ready…is foolish. Iraq/Afganistan/whatever…as soon as our last troops are out they’ll become dictators and loot every penny and human right from their people. It is all they know, all they want & all they are waiting for.

      BTW, funny how presidents (R or D) always choose dates that land outside ther term/s.

      Report Post »  
    • 1stAmendment
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 12:58am

      Putting a withdrawal date is a mistake because if they know when were leaving thell wait it out,
      But if they don’t know it can break them down, it can make lose patients, and they think you’ll be there forever!

      Report Post »  
    • CultureWarriors
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:05am

      Barry once again proves his ignorance and ignores General Petraeus. I pray Barry‘s stupidity doesn’t get any troops killed. I’m sure his wisdom is far greater than a West Point Graduate with almost 40 years experience who is widely regarded as the best military mind we have. NOT. Obama’s stupidity is a clear and present danger to our troops. Barry, please resign now before you do any more harm to the country with your profound incompetence.

      Report Post » CultureWarriors  
    • RLTW
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 1:52am

      Barry’s stupidity is already getting troops killed, the MSM doesn’t even report casualties or deaths any more but I can tell you first hand things over there are worse than ever.

      We are losing friendly locals in mass because they know we’re leaving them high and dry, they see no need in setting themselves up as targets if the support they need is leaving. 1/3rd of the people really want our help and they’ll be the ones who suffer in the end.

      Don’t get me wrong I think we should have pulled out long ago, 1/3 want a better country, 1/3 hate us and 1/3 are to stupid to know what they want. What’s sad is the 1/3rd who want a better life will become the next addition to the killing fields.

      Report Post »  
    • nptden
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 2:56am

      What successes? We lost men. Will pull out. Wasted money like Iraq. Train their people, leave them weapons to fight us again. When will we get real. We are not the world police. While we waste our fortune and blood, they infiltrated our own country. Wake up America. What the hell do we have nukes for?
      Use them if they even show the slightest sign of using theirs. This PC attitude will defeat our own people.
      We are isolated already. Time to bring our boys home to straighten out our own land and protect our borders.

      Report Post » nptden  
    • Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:02am

      Bring them all home, and bring them now.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • hauschild
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:07am

      Yeah, the first withdrawal is right in line with the Marxist’s first wave of re-election propaganda.

      Wanna stump a liberal? Ask them to define “shame”.

      Report Post »  
    • IMPEACHBHO
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 8:30am

      He is doing this for votes. He will thump this during his campaign. Never mind that the military is saying it is still dicey there. This will be a premature withdraw and result in losing in Afghanistan to the terrorists, all for votes. If you going to pull out and let it fall, then you might as well do it today, and admit to what you are doing.

      Report Post » IMPEACHBHO  
    • sWampy
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 11:36am

      We should set up hundreds of mini-nukes on 100 foot towers all around the country, have them monitored where nobody can get within 1/4 a mile of them. Pull out all our troops. Tell them you cause any trouble at home or anywhere in the world that harms even a fly, we turn your entire country into a huge glass sheet.

      Report Post »  
    • Gold Coin & Economic News
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 3:03pm

      Whatever the President says tonight you can bet it will be filled with lies, distortions, rhetoric, pure propaganda and at least one jab at George W.

      Report Post » Gold Coin & Economic News  
    • Teaparty-grammy
      Posted on June 22, 2011 at 5:09pm

      @sWampy, who Posted: “We should set up hundreds of mini-nukes on 100 foot towers all around the country, have them monitored where nobody can get within 1/4 a mile of them. Pull out all our troops. Tell them you cause any trouble at home or anywhere in the world that harms even a fly, we turn your entire country into a huge glass sheet.”

      This is the best “Middle Eastern” strategy I have seen! This would work for Iraq, too.

      Report Post » Teaparty-grammy  
    • 91AP
      Posted on June 24, 2011 at 9:37pm

      To be sent to Yemen, Pakistan, and Libya. 3 more Nobel Peace Prizes comin’ up.

      Report Post »  
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