US troops in Afghanistan take support role this spring

US troops in Afghanistan take support role this spring ahead of schedule
By CHRIS CARROLL
Stars and Stripes
Published: January 11, 2013

WASHINGTON – U.S. and NATO forces will hand off leadership for security throughout Afghanistan to indigenous troops a few months sooner than expected, an acceleration that assuages Afghan concerns about sovereignty and backs up U.S. claims that the war is on track.

“What we’re seeing is Afghan soldiers are stepping up, at great risk to themselves, and that allows us to make that transition during the spring,” President Barack Obama said Friday in a joint White House press conference with President Hamid Karzai.

The so-called “roadmap” for the security transition previously called for Afghan troops to take the lead throughout the country in mid-2013, as U.S. forces took on an advisory and support mission. Now that will happen early in the year.
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