The United States' war in Afghanistan, launched in 2001 after the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, is now in its 15th year, making it the longest military campaign in U.S. history. U.S. President Barack Obama vowed to end his country's involvement in that fight, and he has worked assiduously — some would say with reckless disregard — to keep that promise. Last week, however, Obama bowed to the inevitable and announced that he would extend the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan. His decision is a bitter pill for the president — not only because it means he will not accomplish one of his most cherished goals but because it means that the Afghan government is unable to defend itself.
There were 33,000 U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan when Obama took office, a number he boosted by almost one-half to help stabilize "a deteriorating situation." Those numbers were increased by another 4,000 fighters after a 60-day review. At the end of 2009, the president announced that he would again increase the number of U.S. forces in the country, this time by 30,000, but also revealed that he would begin reducing that headcount by July 2011.
Six months later, Obama announced that withdrawals would begin at the end of 2011, with 10,000 troops returning home in December 2011and another 23,000 troops departing by the following summer. The president's plan was to hand over responsibility for Afghan security to Afghan forces by the end of 2014. By then the bulk of U.S. and NATO forces would be withdrawn, with a residual force remaining to provide limited security and advice.