22/6/11 - Obama may cut 10,000 troops from Afghanistan -- are they heading for Libya?

U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to call Wednesday for a major withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, with roughly 10,000 coming home to the U.S. in less than a year.The phased drawdown is likely to start with 5,000 troops recalled this summer and an additional 5,000 by winter or spring 2012, according to a senior U.S. defence official.

Obama is also weighing a timetable for bringing home the 20,000 other troops he ordered to Afghanistan as part of his December 2009 decision to send reinforcements to reverse the Taliban's battlefield momentum.

The withdrawals would put the U.S. on a path toward giving Afghans control of their security by 2014 and ultimately shifting the U.S. military from a combat role to a mission focused on training and supporting Afghan forces.
Obama is to address the nation from the White House at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday. (read more)