07-21-2009, 12:57 PM
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#224 (permalink)
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Junkie
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Willravel
Oh comon, the last thing President Bush did in office was send a "surge" into Afghanistan. When he left office, there were over 138,000 troops there. I don't know what you're basing your opinion that the approach was "surgical" on, but it seems that Obama quite literally is continuing exactly the same as Bush would have done.
Anyway, outside of Afghanistan, what changes have Obama made? |
From the article you cited:
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Mr Bush, whose decision was denounced by Democrats, including Barack Obama, said that he would be sending an additional 4,500 troops to Afghanistan, where a resurgent Taleban and al-Qaeda have greatly increased violence in recent months.
He described the increase of soldiers there as a “quiet surge”, bringing the US presence to 31,000, compared with 146,000 in Iraq at present.
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Since:
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WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama on Tuesday ordered an additional 17,000 American troops into Afghanistan to reinforce embattled U.S. and NATO forces fighting a deepening Taliban insurgency.
The decision will increase the size of the U.S. military force in Afghanistan - currently at 37,000 troops - by about 50 per cent.
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Obama orders 17,000 more troops into Afghanistan
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So far, the Obama administration has approved sending 68,000 troops to Afghanistan by the end of 2009, including 21,000 that were added this spring.
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Gates: Afghanistan Troop Levels Could Rise Again
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The buildup of US troops in Afghanistan could force more Taliban fighters into neighbouring Pakistan, the chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff conceded last night.
Admiral Mike Mullen told the US Senate's foreign relations committee: "We can't deny that our success may only push them [the Taliban] deeper into Pakistan."
Mullen said military planning was under way to overcome that risk. He said the increase of 21,000 US forces in Afghanistan was "about right" for the new strategy of trying to quell the insurgency and speed up training of Afghan security forces.
"Can I [be] 100% certain that won't destabilise Pakistan? I don't know the answer to that," Mullen told the committee.
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US troop surge in Afghanistan 'could push Taliban into Pakistan' | World news | guardian.co.uk
Note the last comment - "destabilize Pakistan". Bush was being very careful in that regard. Obama is being reckless in both his words and his actions.
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