McChrystal leaves wiggle room on withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan

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Perhaps the biggest unresolved issue in President Obama’s new policy for Afghanistan is what exactly happens in July 2011, the date the president set for the beginning of the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

In his testimony this morning, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, gave an authoritative answer to the House Armed Services Committee. But he left himself some wiggle room.

“I don’t view July 2011 as a deadline,” McChrystal told the panel. He said he believed the military could meet the July 2011 timetable to begin withdrawal, but the U.S. “will decide the pace and scope. I don’t believe it’s a deadline at all.”

McChrystal went on to put the date in the context of the natural evolution of the Afghanistan military plan.

Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) pressed McChrystal on the deadline, but the general avoided giving a “yes” or “no” answer on the July 2011 date. McChrystal also avoided giving a firm answer on whether he would ask for more troops.

‘I will always give my best military advice,’ McChrystal said, adding he could not speculate on the future.

The 2011 date was a key part of Obama’s policy announced in his Nov. 30 West Point speech. In essence, the White House has made clear, Obama wants to speed up the entrance of more U.S. troops so the United States can begin bringing them home earlier.

Obama, in his speech, also noted that conditions on the ground could affect the draw-down date. Setting a timetable for withdrawal politically appealed to liberals in his own party.

If the plan is to meet the July 2011 deadline, why won’t the Taliban simply sit back and wait out the United States and its allies, McChrystal was asked.

The general argued that the Taliban insurgency couldn’t afford to wait because it would get weaker.

--Michael Muskal
Twitter.com/LATimesmuskal