President Obama Addresses the Nation from West Point on the US Combat Strategy in Afghanistan

President Obama opened his speech on December 1, 2009 by explaining the reason the US is still in Afghanistan, and reinforcing the importance of continuing the combat there. He reiterated that al-Qaeda, the group responsible for 9/11, is still active in Afghanistan and is being helped by the Taliban, thus in his estimation it is imperative for American forces to remain in the country to destabilize these organizations and prevent them from wielding power or influence. He harkened back to the days following 9/11, when the international community supported US military action in Afghanistan, and he compared the American operation in Afghanistan to that in Iraq, a war which tarnished the image of the United States around the world.

The president went on comparing Iraq to Afghanistan, indicating that Iraq has become relatively stable. In his speech, he went on to describe the conditions in Afghanistan, pointing out how the economy has deteriorated and the drug trade is affecting the lives of many Afghans. He also talked about Pakistan and the need for partnership between the United States and this country.

Much was made of the length of time President Obama took in coming to a conclusion about this situation. In his speech, he addressed those who criticized his deliberations by insisting that a careful review of the conditions and American capabilities was needed. He revealed that he will send 30,000 troops to Afghanistan only because he believes that US national security is at stake. He also laid out objectives that he wants to meet, which includes stopping the Taliban's momentum, building up and training Afghanistan's own forces, and working closely with the United Nations and American allies and creating partnerships based on mutual interests.

The president also took the opportunity to address three common criticisms of his strategy in his speech. He cited the broad coalition of nations that supported American action in Afghanistan as evidence that the comparisons to Vietnam do not hold water, along with the differences in the political realities between Vietnam and Afghanistan, and cited 9/11 as the driving impetus behind American engagement overseas, again to separate this engagement from the Vietnam War. He also spoke about his fears regarding leaving the current troops in Afghanistan without adding more, indicating that the United States will not be able to counterbalance the gains the Taliban has made if the status quo is maintained. Third, he cited cost as a main reason he did not want to have a potentially decades-long "open-ended" conflict with a goal of transforming the entire region. He also indicated this seemingly perpetual conflict might make the Afghans too dependent on the United States for keeping their own country stable.

He included in his speech that the cost of sending more troops to Afghanistan would be $30 billion, and he went on to state that his primary focus needs to be rebuilding the United States instead of foreign countries.

After the speech, Senator John McCain of Arizona was interviewed. He indicated that he supports the president's decision, but he did not think setting a timetable was a good idea, because he worries that al-Qaeda and the Taliban will become bolder with their insurgency as a result. He compared the situation to Iraq, claiming Iraq was successful because the conditions on the ground improved and thus dictated that troops could be drawn down, instead of the other way around.

Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, and David Gregory of Meet the Press were interviewed as well. Haass recognized that the president's strategy is squarely between the popular left and right positions on Afghanistan, but he wondered what would happen if conditions in Afghanistan became worse by the time the president wanted to bring all American troops home. David Gregory remarked that though the president indicated that continuing operations in the country were imperative for American national security, he also did not want to preserve this national security at great cost to the country.

Source: "President Obama Addresses the Nation". Televised speech. National Broadcasting Corporation. December 1, 2009.