President Obama arrived in Afghanistan at nighttime to find quite a bit of symbolism present with regards to the peace talks that were put to completion. Obama was there to sign an agreement that the US military move will leave Afghanistan to the local military, but it was also an agreement to state that the US may be gone in terms of military, but the aid is still there. The US is not abandoning Afghanistan, but agreeing to move the military out with just a light presence still remaining for the shift back to local control.
Afghanistan feels that its military is prepared to protect the citizens from any uprisings. It was in the last two months that agreements were finally reached on a strategic part and both governments feel that any insurgents have been driven out. Obama landed around midnight to sign the agreement that would pull out the military, although some troops will remain as the transition occurs.
NATO has been returning most of Afghanistan to local military control for the past year, and most particularly in the last few months. The agreement has also provided aid in terms of monetary funds to help maintain the Afghan police and army, along with aiding the country and its citizens. The move out of Afghanistan will speed up now that the agreement has been signed; however, there is still a year to go before the military leaves completely. There are about 88,000 troops that will need to move out.
Jon Huser
