U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Kennedy and Spc. Douglas Petty radio in possible enemy locations during a patrol in Katalai village in Afghanistan's Khowst province, June 15, 2011. Kennedy and Petty are assigned to the 1st Infantry Division's 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Joseph WatsonGates Beats Out Petraeus In Fight Over Afghanistan Withdrawal -- The Atlantic
President Obama sided with his outgoing Defense Secretary over his top general.
Senior White House officials wanted all of the 33,000 U.S. "surge" troops to withdraw from Afghanistan by next spring. Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Kabul, was adamant they stay until the end of 2012. The deadlock was broken by outgoing Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who sold Obama and his top civilian aides on a compromise plan that will leave most of the reinforcements in Afghanistan through next September but ensure they're back well before the November elections.
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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials
Obama Signals Shift Away From Petraeus’ Strategy -- Patrick Goodenough, CNS News
Afghanistan's Moving Parts: Why Obama's Focus Shifted from Nation Building to Army Building -- Joe Klein, Time
Why didn't Obama listen to Petraeus? -- David Gergen, CNN
Obama Raising Doubts About his Credibility as Commander-in-Chief -- Max Boot, Commentary
The Pakistani Elephant in the Room -- Max Fisher, The Atlantic
The radicalization of Pakistan’s military -- Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post
A Moment for Peace in the South Caucasus -- Sabine Freizer, New York Times
The Long Goodbye: The Future North Korea -- Robert D. Kaplan and Abraham M. Denmark, World Affairs
China Looms Over Russian Far East -- Gabe Collins, The Diplomat
China unrest becoming commonplace -- China Post
Libya May Be NATO’s Last Mission -- David Francis, Fiscal Times
Greece and the eurozone: Accept reality – and default -- The Guardian editorial
Inflation climbs to 3.6% in May. Palin was right! -- Howard Richman & Raymond Richman, American Thinker