US President Barack Obama on Tuesday insisted that a drawdown of US forces in Afghanistan would begin as planned in July 2011, as he marked the end of the US combat mission in Iraq, dpa reported.
But Obama insisted the pace of the drawdown would be dictated by the future situation in Afghanistan and pledged that the United States would remain committed to the war-torn country's future well beyond the transition date.
"The pace of our troop reductions will be determined by conditions on the ground, and our support for Afghanistan will endure," Obama said in an evening speech from the White House, in which he declared an end to major US combat operations in Iraq.
Like Iraq, Obama said it would soon be up to Afghans to take responsibility for their own security and future.
"Make no mistake: this transition will begin - because open-ended war serves neither our interests nor the Afghan people's," he said.
As the Iraq war has ended, Obama has shifted focus and troops to the ongoing war in Afghanistan. But he has faced criticism from conservatives for setting a firm timeline for beginning the drawdown of US forces in July 2011.
Obama insists Afghan transition will begin July 2011
