Obama to Hand Over Security to Afghan Forces Next Year

The US president, in an address to his nation on Tuesday, declared August, 2011 a transition of security responsibilities to the Afghan forces

The US president, Barack Obama renewed his commitments to hand over Afghanistan's security to the Afghan forces next year, but warned that the withdrawal of the United States troops will depend on the conditions on the ground.

Mr Obama who promised an enduring support for Afghanistan, said the US troops will begin training and advising Afghan security forces with the aim of handing over responsibility for defence matters.

Obama said in Tuesday's address that he had ordered the deployment of additional troops to Afghanistan who were "fighting to break the Taliban's momentum."

Meanwhile, Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander of foreign forces in Afghanistan in a US television interview in August, said he will not be bound to Obama's July 2011 deadline to begin withdrawing US troops.

Gen. Petraeus who took over command of foreign forces in Afghanistan in July this year, said the July 2011 withdrawal can be changed and should be viewed as a bid to escalate the counter-insurgency efforts in Afghanistan.

The remarks come at a time when the Taliban insurgency is on the rise in the country, especially in southern areas.

There are currently more than 150,000 foreign troops deployed in Afghanistan, almost 120,000 of them US soldiers fighting a 9-year counter-insurgency war in the country.