U.S. Troops Leave Afghanistan: Will History Repeat?

President Barack Obama released a statement over the holiday weekend regarding the U.S.’s involvement in Afghanistan. In particular, he addressed military involvement, and the promised removal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Many headlines, like CNN’s, say something along the lines of “Obama marks end of combat in Afghanistan.” But while this is true technically, most are more interested in discussing what this end does and doesn’t mean. Some are concerned it means Afghanistan will be left vulnerable. Others point out the fact that American troops probably won’t be making a full exit as soon as expected.

This came as a surprise to nearly no one. This expectation is evidenced by the throng of analysts who have predicted he’d renege on his announced timeline. “The president’s decision this past spring to publicly lay out his timeline for ending American troop involvement on the ground is widely regarded as a mistake in Washington,” wrote Brookings Bruce Riedel, and the reasoning behind that criticism is fairly sound. Why make a series of promises the president has been forced to break, and likely will be forced to break in future?  Read More
Revisit Afghanistan's End Game Plan  -  Bruce Riedel