President Obama ran on a platform which involved the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Creating a strategy for the withdrawal of U.S. military was begun just after his election. After the plan for withdrawal was put in motion, the White House has kept it on schedule. By August 31, only 50,000 service personnel will remain in Iraq. All American troops could be gone by the end of 2011.
Handing Iraq back to Iraqis
As outlined by The Guardian, Iraqi authorities will assume direct control of military operations by the end of August. At a speech given at the Disabled American Veterans conference in Atlanta, GA, the President addressed the withdrawal of troops from Iraq. He pointed out the trimming of American forces was part of his campaign platform. The President also pinpointed that 90,000 troops have already been withdrawn from Iraq since he took office. It is projected that on August 31, full military authority can be given to Iraqi forces, and 50,000 American soldiers will remain in an advisory role. American combat maneuvers will then cease.
Focus to shift to Afghanistan
The war in Iraq may be dissipating, but Afghanistan continues to be a hotspot. Obama swore he won’t stand for the Taliban or Al Qaeda returning to power, according to CNN. The Afghan war has been a subject of significant controversy lately. A scandalous Rolling Stone interview prompted the firing of General Stanley McChrystal, and also the Wikileaks release of 90,000 pages of documents pertaining to the Afghan conflict have created a firestorm concerning the long term occupation of Afghanistan.
Beginning of the end or end of the beginning
The withdrawal from Iraq is proceeding according to strategy. The conflict in Afghanistan is far from over. Afghanistan has more United States soldiers than Iraq, and there is a growing belief the war in Afghanistan is not winnable. There is nevertheless no real end in sight for Afghanistan.
Find more information on this subject
guardian.co.uk/world/2010/aug/02/barack-obama-us-iraq-combat
cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/08/02/obama.iraq.drawdown/index.html?hpt=T1
