Central Perk: Bringing the War in Afghanistan to a Responsible End

miercuri, 28 mai 2014

Bringing the War in Afghanistan to a Responsible End

Featured

Bringing the War in Afghanistan to a Responsible End

Yesterday afternoon, in the White House Rose Garden, President Obama talked about the United States' next steps in Afghanistan, and how we'll bring our longest war to a responsible end:

Over the last several years, we've worked to transition security responsibilities to the Afghans. One year ago, Afghan forces assumed the lead for combat operations. Since then, they've continued to grow in size and in strength, while making huge sacrifices for their country. This transition has allowed us to steadily draw down our own forces -- from a peak of 100,000 U.S. troops, to roughly 32,000 today.

The President announced yesterday that 22,000 more troops will return home by the end of the year, ending the U.S. combat mission in December 2014.

Watch the President's full remarks on Afghanistan.

Yesterday, brilliant and innovative students from all over the country came to the White House to participate in the fourth-ever White House Science Fair. For almost an hour, the President toured the exhibits, catching basketballs shot off a hand-built catapult, test driving a remote-controlled search-and-rescue robot, and using his hand to activate an auto-retracting bridge made of Legos.

President Obama made a surprise visit to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan this weekend to thank the American troops and civilians stationed there for their service. He let them know that he was there "on a single mission" -- and that was to say thank you.

In this week's address, President Obama commemorated Memorial Day by honoring the brave men and women in uniform who have given their lives in service to our country. He also underscored our commitment to uphold our nation's sacred trust with our veterans and ensure they get the benefits and opportunities they deserve and have earned.

READ MORE