Obama deploys 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan

US President Barack Obama has outlined a new Afghanistan policy that will send an additional 30,000 US troops to Afghanistan, and start their withdrawal in July 2011.

The "surge" of 30,000 troops is expected to be completed by the summer of 2010.

"The 30,000 additional troops that I am announcing tonight will deploy in the first part of 2010 the fastest pace possible so that they can target the insurgency and secure key population centres," Obama said.

"They will increase our ability to train competent Afghan Security Forces, and to partner with them so that more Afghans can get into the fight. And they will help create the conditions for the United States to transfer responsibility to the Afghans," the President said.

Noting that US' security was at stake in Afghanistan and Pakistan, Obama said: "This is the epicenter of the violent extremism practiced by al Qaeda. It is from here that we were attacked on 9/11, and it is from here that new attacks are being plotted as I speak.

"This is no idle danger; no hypothetical threat. In the last few months alone, we have apprehended extremists within our borders who were sent here from the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan to commit new acts of terror," he said, adding this danger will only grow if the region slides backwards, and al Qaeda can operate with impunity.

"We must keep the pressure on al Qaeda, and to do that, we must increase the stability and capacity of our partners in the region," he said. Observing that this was not just America's war, Obama said since 9/11, al Qaeda s safe-havens have been the source of attacks against London, Amman and Bali.

The people and governments of both Afghanistan and Pakistan are endangered, he noted. "And the stakes are even higher within a nuclear-armed Pakistan, because we know that al Qaeda and other extremists seek nuclear weapons, and we have every reason to believe that they would use them," he said.

"These facts compel us to act along with our friends and allies. Our overarching goal remains the same: to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and to prevent its capacity to threaten America and our allies in the future," Obama said.

To meet that goal, we will pursue the following objectives within Afghanistan. We must deny al Qaeda a safe-haven. We must reverse the Taliban's momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the government.

"And we must strengthen the capacity of Afghanistan's Security Forces and government, so that they can take lead responsibility for Afghanistan's future," Obama said. Stating that this was an international effort, Obama said he has asked that US commitment be joined by contributions from its allies.

"Some have already provided additional troops, and we are confident that there will be further contributions in the days and weeks ahead," he said. "Our friends have fought and bled and died alongside us in Afghanistan.

Now, we must come together to end this war successfully. For what's at stake is not simply a test of NATO's credibility what's at stake is the security of our Allies, and the common security of the world," Obama said. "Taken together, these additional US and international troops will allow us to accelerate handing over responsibility to Afghan forces, and allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011," he said.

"Just as we have done in Iraq, we will execute this transition responsibly, taking into account conditions on the ground. We will continue to advise and assist Afghanistan s Security Forces to ensure that they can succeed over the long haul.

"But it will be clear to the Afghan government and, more importantly, to the Afghan people that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country," Obama said.

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