US Ambassador Disagrees on Afghan Troop Surge

Said to be close to decision as Asia trip looms

(NEWSER) - President Obama is zeroing in on an Afghanistan strategy that likely includes sending in some 30,000 troops, reports Reuters —short of Gen. Stanley McChrystal's requested 40,000, but far greater than war-weary Democrats may support. An additional 4,000 trainers are likely to be sent, McClatchy reports, with the first troops hitting the ground in March. 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»

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»

On surprise trip, president says goal of defeating al-Qaeda in reach

(NEWSER) - President Obama wrapped up his surprise trip to Afghanistan —during which he signed an accord with Hamid Karzai on how the US will wind down its presence after 2014—with an address to Americans. He declared that the US has "a clear path to fulfill our mission in Afghanistan," but vowed to end war "responsibly," reports CNN and the New York Times . Some excerpts:

• "My fellow Americans, we have traveled through more than a decade under the dark cloud of war. Yet here, in the predawn darkness of Afghanistan, we can see the light of a new day on the horizon."
• “The goal that I set, to defeat al-Qaeda and deny it the chance to rebuild, is now within our reach."