Obama Orders Slowdown Of Troop Withdrawal From Afghanistan

President Obama is slowing the U.S. troop drawdown in Afghanistan. President Obama says the U.S. will keep nearly 10-thousand U.S. troops in Afghanistan through the end of this year.

In a White House news briefing with new Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Obama said he remains committed to ending more than a decade of war in Afghanistan. Ghani asked Obama to slow the speed of the drawdown.

U.S. troop levels will continue to be reduced next year, though Obama said specifics have not been worked out. He insisted that he still aims to have most American forces out of Afghanistan by the end of 2016.

Obama said the U.S. combat role is over but stressed that the U.S. commitment to the Afghan people will go on. Remaining U.S. forces are primarily helping Afghan security forces. Obama said the goal is to help the Afghan security forces succeed so the U.S. doesn't have to come back.