Change of commanders in Afghanistan starts clock on end of U.S. war there

[unhappycamper]

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2013/02/08/182477/change-of-commanders-in-afghanistan.html



fghan newly graduated police officers march during their graduation ceremony at a National Police training center in Jalalabad, east of Kabul, Afghanistan

Change of commanders in Afghanistan starts clock on end of U.S. war there
By Jay Price and Matt Schofield | McClatchy Newspapers

KABUL, Afghanistan — Inside the heavily secured headquarters of the NATO-led forces here, the man who could be the last commander of America’s longest war will officially take charge Sunday of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Marine Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr. will replace Marine Gen. John Allen, who is expected to become NATO’s supreme allied commander in Europe.

With the United States committed to removing its combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, Dunford’s assignment will include winding down an American presence that stretches back to just after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Already, the number of American bases is shrinking, and the U.S. involvement in combat, as shown by the number of dead and wounded, is dropping. Several of the countries that have fought side by side with the United States already have withdrawn their forces or intend to soon.

The United States and its allies have said they’ll leave some troops behind to train and support Afghan security forces, but Dunford’s assumption of command marks the beginning of the end of America’s war in Afghanistan.

[lonestarnot]

1. Too bad this was let go so long.