No ‘adjustments’ required in current Pak, Afghanistan strategy: Obama

ISLAMABAD - As US-led forces escalate operations against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, US President, Barack Obama, has declared that no current changes are needed to his Afghanistan and Pakistan strategy.

Amid fresh evidence of an escalation of US activity in the lawless region between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Obama delivered the verdict, as he handed over his administration’s latest classified report on the conduct of the war mandated by Congress, the Dawn reported.

“We are continuing to implement the policy as described in December and do not believe further adjustments are required at this time,” wrote the US president.

“As the Congress continues its deliberations on the way ahead in Afghanistan and Pakistan, I want to continue to underscore our nation’s interests in the successful implementation of this policy,” he added.

At the end of the exhaustive policy review, Obama announced plans to surge 30,000 troops into Afghanistan in a bid to seize the momentum in the long-running war, but added that the troop withdrawal would begin by July 2011.

Though he is expected to mount a fresh review of strategy on Afghanistan by the end of the year, no major adjustments are expected, the paper said.

The NATO-led strategy is designed to push Taliban insurgents out of major towns in the south and east, while building up Afghan government security forces, so that American troops can start withdrawing by July 2011.

Defence Secretary Robert Gates and top commanders say there are tentative signs of progress in Afghanistan, where nearly 150,000 US and allied troops are trying to turn the tide against a resilient insurgency. (ANI)