Decisions Will Pave Path to End War

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Decisions Will Pave Path to End War
November 19, 2009
American Forces Press Service|by SFC Michael J. Carden

A range of decisions still remain for President Barack Obama and his administration to finalize the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, the president said in Beijing.

In separate interviews with traveling press, Obama said Afghans have to be responsible for their own security and Pakistan has to be more effectively involved.

"There are a range of things that we know we have to do," the president told CBS correspondent Chip Reid. "At this point, it's a matter of fine-tuning a strategy that we can be confident will be successful and also won't be open-ended."

Obama has endured complaints that the process for deciding the way forward in Afghanistan is taking too long. Underscoring the importance of the decision, today he said, "This decision will put us on a path towards ending the war."

The overall goal in Afghanistan is national security, protecting U.S. allies and American interests around the globe, Obama said. Also, Afghanistan must be stable enough to eventually create a smaller U.S. footprint there.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/news/article/army-news/decisions-will-pave-path-to-end-war.html?col=1186032369115