The president on Thursday announced that he will maintain the current posture of 9,800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan well into 2016, and that number will be reduced to 5,500 in 2017. In May 2014, Obama anticipated that only 1,000 U.S. troops would remain in Afghanistan by the end of 2016 to guard the U.S. Embassy in Kabul. "Afghan forces are still not as strong as they need to be," Obama announced on Thursday. "Frankly, we anticipated, as we were drawing down troops, that there would be times where we might need to slow things down or fill gaps in Afghan capacity, and this is a reflection of that." Although the U.S. combat mission is over and will not resume, "there are still risks involved," he admitted.
The U.S. troops remaining in Afghanistan will continue to operate out of bases in various parts of that country in an advise-and-assist and counter-terrorism capacity. "We're going to continually make adjustments to ensure that we get the best possibilities for success, and I suspect that we will continue to evaluate this going forward, as will the next president, and as conditions improve, we'll be in a position to make further adjustments," Obama said. "But I'm absolutely confident this is the right thing to do, and I'm not disappointed, because my view has always been, how do we achieve our goals while minimizing the strain and expsoure on our men and women in uniform and make sure that we are constantly encouraging and sending a message to the Afghan people -- that this is their country and they've got to defend it. But we're going to be a steady partner for them."
As CNSNews.com previously reported, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan told Congress on Oct. 6 that since the United States ended combat operations in Afghanistan in 2014 -- transitioning to an advisory role -- things have changed in that country, and not for the better. "
ntense combat continues in many parts of the country," Gen. John Campbell told the Senate Armed Services Committee. In addition to a resurgent Taliban, he said fighters from Pakistan have crossed into Afghanistan, and the arrival of Islamic State fighters "has further complicated the theater landscape and potentially expanded the conflict."
Obama 'Anticipated' That the Afghanistan Plan Would Change: 'I'm Not Disappointed'
