Obama Eyes 30K+ Troop Surge

Wants Karzai government to shape up first

(NEWSER) - The US ambassador to Afghanistan—a former general who served there as recently as 2007—is against increasing troop levels until the Afghan government gets its act together. In classified cables ahead of President Obama’s deliberations on a surge, Karl Eikenberry cites rampant corruption and mismanagement in Hamid Karzai’s administration. His dissent isn’t sitting well with Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top commander in Afghanistan and an ardent proponent of increasing troop levels, the Washington Post reports. More»

White House wants to make sure surge will enable handover

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration’s extended ruminations on an Afghan surge aren’t really over how many troops to send in—they’re about how they’ll get those troops out. Obama’s main problem with the initial military plan was that it seemed too open ended, administration sources tell Gerald Seib of the Wall Street Journal . The White House wants to ensure that a buildup “is a prelude to, rather than a substitute for, Afghanistan taking over the security job.” More»

High long-term costs a big factor in debate

(NEWSER) - When President Obama rejected advisers' recommendations on Afghan troops and insisted they be retooled with exit strategies, he had the war's long-term financial costs in mind, an insider tells the New York Times . While military strategy gets the headlines, the financial constraints also are weighing heavily. Some specfics:

• Gen. McChyrstal's preferred option of adding 40,000 troops would cost $40 billion to $54 billion per year.

White House denies decision made

(NEWSER) - President Obama has decided to grant Gen. Stanley McChrystal's request for a large and long-term increase in US forces in Afghanistan, according to CBS and AP , which cite "informed sources." The president will give the general almost all the troops he has asked for, boosting the size of the US force in Afghanistan to 100,000 by the end of next year, according to CBS, whose report was firmly denied by the White House. More»

White House denies a decision has made, but UK's move would make more sense

(NEWSER) - President Obama will announce a troop surge in Afghanistan next week, sources tell the BBC, with Afghanistan’s ambassador to the US saying Obama will commit as many as 45,000. The White House says there’s been no decision, with spokesman Robert Gibbs sniffing that the BBC wouldn’t be the first to get such news anyway. More»