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1st LD: Obama says no drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan this year

Xinhua, March 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

U.S. President Barack Obama announced Tuesday no drawdown of the current 9,800 U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan will occur through the end of 2015.

Noting that Afghanistan "remains a dangerous place," Obama said in a joint press conference with visiting Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that given the upcoming spring war season with Afghan militants, it is worthwhile to grant flexibility requested by Ghani in terms of the U.S. drawdown timeline.

Obama had previously planed to reduce the current level of 9, 800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan to around 5,500 by the end of 2015 and withdraw all troops by the end of 2016 when his presidency comes to an end.

However, Ghani has made clear on many occasions that such a timeline for a U.S. army withdrawal would jeopardize the security situation on the ground. Prior to his American visit, he had also repeatedly told U.S. media that the extremist group Islamic State was targeting Afghanistan and gaining influence within the nation.

Meanwhile, a joint U.S.-Afghanistan statement issued shortly before the press conference said the specific trajectory of the 2016 U.S. troops drawdown will be established later this year to allow consolidation of the U.S. troops to a Kabul-based embassy presence by the end of 2016. Endite