Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Afghanistan welcomes American draw-down

Transcript
TONY JONES, PRESENTER: The Afghan Defence ministry has welcomed the prospect of a cut in the number of American troops in Afghanistan.

US president Barack Obama is expected to announce tomorrow plans to withdraw 10,000 troops by the end of the year. A drawdown would help NATO allies meet a 2014 deadline for Afghanistan to resume control of its own security.

ZAHIR AZIMI, AFGHAN DEFENCE MINISTRY SPOKESMAN (voiceover translation): The Afghan National Army is capable of filling the gaps which will be created as a result of the withdrawal of these troops in some of the places with the manpower it has.

TONY JONES: There are currently 100,000 US troops in Afghanistan. More than 1,500 US personnel have died since the invasion in 2001.

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