WASHINGTON, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama will unveil new Afghan strategy through an address to the nation next Tuesday evening from West Point military academy, N.Y., the White House said on Wednesday.
"The president will address the nation on Tuesday at 8:00 pm eastern time (0100 GMT Wednesday) from the military academy at West Point on Afghanistan," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters.
He stressed that the Afghan war, which is in its 9th year, won't last "another eight or nine years."
Gibbs added that the president will meet members of the Congress before delivering the address.
Obama said Tuesday that he will announce his decision on a buildup of U.S. forces in Afghanistan "shortly" and it is his intention to "finish the job" in that country.
Without detailing his pending decision, the president predicted that the American public will be "extremely supportive" of the decision.
Obama also said decision will also include civilian and diplomatic efforts.
As the public is turning negative toward the Afghan war and his fellow Democrats are increasingly vocal in their opposition to a troop buildup in Afghanistan, the incoming decision is regarded as one of the most critical moment to shape his presidency.
Obama ordered to send 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan in March and U.S. troop levels there has grown to 68,000.
However, as the situation in Afghanistan deteriorates, Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, has been calling for 40,000 more troops since August to quell the insurgency led by Taliban.
Obama has held 10 sessions with his war council on Afghan strategy since then and weighed several options for bolstering the American contingent, ranging from sending 15,000 troops to sending the 40,000 McChrystal requested.
The last such meeting was held on Monday.
Pentagon officials said there has been no final word on the president's decision, but planners have been tasked with preparing to send 34,000 additional American troops into battle with the expectation that is the number Obama is leaning toward approving.
Meanwhile, Obama aides were quoted by the New York Times as saying Wednesday that the troop increase would most likely be slightly below 30,000.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to announce decision on a pending buildup of U.S. troops Afghanistan "within days", preparing for a tough sale for the increasingly unpopular war.
"After completing a rigorous final meeting, President Obama has the information he wants and needs to make his decision and he will announce that decision within days," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said in a statement emailed to reporters Tuesday. Full story
WASHINGTON, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama is probably weighing three options for his new Afghanistan strategy, analysts at the New York Times said.
While each option proposes different level of troop increase, what really matters is how to fight the war under these options, they said in an analysis published by the newspaper on Monday. Full story
WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Sunday that Afghan President Hamid Karzai must do better for U.S. support, adding that the Obama administration would convince the American people that the war in Afghanistan can be won.
"We've delivered that message. Now that the election is finally over, we're looking to see tangible evidence that the government, led by the president but going all the way down to the local level, will be more responsive to the needs of the people," said Clinton in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos. Full story
ISLAMABAD, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Friday asked Leon E. Panetta, the chief of U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), to share the American strategy with Pakistan, official said.
U.S. President Barack Obama is set to announce shortly the new Afghan strategy, which will also include deployment more U.S. troops as well as an exit strategy. Full story
NEW DELHI, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he hopes the United States and the global community "will stay involved in Afghanistan", said a report by the Indo-Asian News Service Friday.
Singh made the remarks in an interview with the U.S. newspaper the Washington Post on the eve of his visit to the United States next week, according to the report. Full story
