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Obama said a lot of things that didn't mean anything - he made overtures to muslims yet remained silent while palestinian children were killed while "playing on the beach"!
But the sad fact is that the USA would never have been allowed into Afghanistan without British co-operation and the foreign secretary here has already stated the Prime Minister's view that the war in Afghanistan was a big mistake and should never have happened. British troops will end up pulling out.
In Iraq the pullout was first billed as a "slow withdrawal" and even today a lot of Americans have been led to believe that "US operations" continue for a couple of years... the reality (away from the public relations) is that on 1st jan 2009, the iraq war ended and americans no longer have any rights to kill in iraq. Any american doing so can be shot dead and international forces will not stick up for that american any more.
The same is happening in afghanistan. When I used to work for that company where I spoke to many US and European soldiers I discovered that the armies' position in afghanistan is the complete opposite to the bravado put out by the right wing press... they have bad money problems, their morale is sapped by the fact that most soldiers consider themselves to be conducting immoral and illegal activities (although US soldiers were just depressed because they're the ones thrown into early graves most often out of nato troops).
The war in Afghanistan is illegal, immoral and failing. Britain has already made an unofficial yet CLEAR (to labour's voters, who demand it - this I have from the horse's mouth, labour party senior campaigners, face to face discussions with) that WE are pulling out of Afghanistan.
The troops I'd speak to in Europe, moreover, bitterly told me that the US troops were "the enemy" and that they "only care about themselves". Europe's armies 99% want to fight AGAINST the USA, not with her.
Obama lied to you. He said that because he wouldn't be president now if he had threatened to end the Afghanistan war! Unlike Britain, the voters in the USA are pro-war!
But if Obama says operations in Afghanistan are ending, later this year, and pulls out troops - you can't vote him out of office. He still has his whole presidency. I wouldn't rely on his word so much. Politicians are famous for breaking promises.
The USA has lost most of its military support in Afghanistan and was always losing there - to persist would be very suicidal for the US economy. Is obesy going to do what's bad for the economy? I don't believe so, myself. Plus, as the first black president he won't, surely, go down as a supporter of any illegal racist war!
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It is a hugely important air base for us 
The US base has been the focus of local protests
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