国际英语新闻:Obama breaks his promise to end Afghanistan war

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama announced plans Thursday to keep 5,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan into 2017, and to maintain the current 9,800 U.S. force through most of 2016, retreating from his campaign pledge to pull troops from Afghanistan during his tenure.

"First, I have decided to maintain our current posture of 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through most of next year, 2016," Obama made the announcement at the White House, flanked by Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Joseph Dunford.

The president said the Afghan military has made gains but is still not as strong as it needs to be. He also argued that "in key areas of" Afghanistan, "the security situation is still very fragile, and in some places there is risk of deterioration."

"Second, I've decided that instead of going down to a normal embassy presence in Kabul by the end of 2016, we will maintain 5,500 troops, including at Bagram, Jalalabad in the east, and Kandahar in the south."

Calling the new plan "modest but meaningful", Obama noted that the U.S. troops in Afghanistan will still "focus on training Afghans and counterterrorism operations," which is mainly about "going after Al Qaida."

"Thirdly, we will work with allies and partners to align the steps I'm announcing today with their own presence in Afghanistan after 2016," Obama said, the U.S. will also continue to support Afghan government "as they pursue critical reforms".

Obama said that the adjustment made after "consultations with entire national security team," "international partners and members of Congress" as well as Afghan leaders, and it is "the best possibility for a lasting progress in Afghanistan".

The U.S.-led coalition ended its combat mission in Afghanistan at the end of 2014. Since then, the Afghan troops have been in charge of the nation's security, who, Obama said "are fully responsible for securing their country."

Thursday's decision mounts to a major political reversal to Obama's campaign promises that he would withdraw all but a small U.S.-embassy based force in the capital, Kabul, before leaving office in January 2017.

The announcement also means that the U.S. longest war will not end during Obama's tenure.

"This isn't the first time those adjustments have been made. This probably won't be the last," Obama defended his decisions, "I suspect that we will continue to evaluate this going forward, as will the next president."

The decision came amid gains by Taliban militants, "particularly in rural areas." Obama argued that the Taliban "can still deadly launch attacks in cities, including Kabul."

Earlier this month, Obama was thrown into the spotlight for his military's condemned "war crime" after the U.S. air forces bombed a hospital of Doctors Without Borders in Kunduz, killing at least 22 people.

The bombing shocked the international community and angered aid groups worldwide.

Obama made an apology four days after the attack. He also assured Afghan President Ashraf Ghani with continuing cooperations with the Afghan government, according to White House.