Thursday, Oct 23, 2014  2016, the Kabul story  In Afghanistan,
however, the real question lies in the capacity of the Afghan
government to survive. (Source: Reuters photo) In Afghanistan,
the real question lies in the capacity of the Afghan government
to survive. (Source: Reuters photo) Written by Frederic Grare |
Posted: June 13, 2014 12:13 am | Updated: June 13, 2014 12:16 am
On May 27, US President Barack Obama announced that the last
American troops would withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of
2016.  Assuming that the two candidates in the Afghan
presidential election run-off make good on their promises to
conclude a bilateral security agreement (BSA) that would permit
a residual American military presence, some 9,800 US troops will
remain in the country after 2014, with half of them slated to
depart by the end of 2015. From 2015 onward, the remaining
troops will conduct counter-terrorism operations and work to
train the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) for two more
years, eventually leaving only