Obama Wants Afghan War Over in 3 Years

He wants all new troops on the ground within 6 months
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 1, 2009 12:41 PM CST
Obama Wants Afghan War Over in 3 Years
A soldier from Golf Battery 4th 317 stands atop a vehicle before patrol near the town of Maidan Shar, Wardak province, Afghanistan Tuesday Dec. 1, 2009.   (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)

President Obama wants the war effort in Afghanistan wrapped up in 3 years and most US troops home by then, senior officials tell CNN. He also wants to speed up deployment of the 30,000 or so additional troops he's sending, with the first Marines expected to be on the ground by Christmas. All new troops are expected to be in place within 6 months, reports the AP. The details come ahead of Obama's address to the nation tonight.

The new troops will bring the total number of US forces to about 100,000 by the end of May. “We want to knock the Taliban back, giving us time and space to build the Afghans up mainly in the security front but also in governance and development as well,” a senior official tells the New York Times.
(More Afghanistan war stories.)

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