Washington (CNN) -- In his State of the Union speech
Tuesday, President Obama will announce that by this time next year,
34,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan will have returned home, according to
sources with knowledge of the president's speech.
The move will reduce the number of U.S. forces in the country by more than half. There are now about 66,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
A Washington Post poll
out Tuesday morning shows that 80% of registered voters support the
president's policy to end the war in Afghanistan.
In January, Obama met
with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Washington, where they agreed to
accelerate the military transition in Afghanistan. Afghan forces will
take the lead in combat missions throughout the country starting in
spring, instead of midyear as was previously expected.
The White House has been
considering a range of troop levels to remain in Afghanistan once the
combat mission officially ends at the end of 2014, from as many as
15,000 troops to none at all.
Those options were submitted by Gen. John Allen,
who until recently was the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan. Allen's
final days as the top commander were marred by an investigation linked
to the sex scandal that prompted the resignation of David Petraeus as
CIA director.
Allen was cleared of
allegations that he wrote potentially inappropriate e-mails to a woman
involved in the scandal. He is now the nominee to become the top NATO
commander and was replaced in Afghanistan this week by Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford.
A senior administration
official told CNN on Monday that in addition to bringing home 34,000
U.S. troops by February 2014, more reductions will continue through the
end of next year as Afghans take full responsibility for their security.
The U.S. and its
partners in the war in Afghanistan have "struck devastating blows
against al Qaeda, and Afghan forces continue to grow stronger, with
352,000 now in training or on duty," the official said.
Afghan forces are
leading nearly 90% of operations across Afghanistan, and by this spring
they'll take the lead across the entire country, the official said.
The U.S. and the International Security Assistance Force, known as ISAF,
will continue to step back to train, advise and assist Afghan forces,
the official said, explaining that means the U.S. will no longer be
leading combat operations.
"By the end of 2014, we
will responsibly bring our war in Afghanistan to a close," the official
said, adding that Obama made his decision "based on the recommendations
of the military and his national security team," consultations with
Karzai and "international coalition partners."
Dunford will oversee the final two years of the war and the withdrawal of nearly all troops.
On Sunday, at a change-of-command ceremony in Kabul, Dunford remarked on the job ahead.
"Today is not about change, it's about continuity," he said, alongside Allen and other senior NATO and Afghan officials.
"I'll endeavor to
continue the momentum of the campaign and support the people of
Afghanistan as they seize the opportunity for a brighter future."
Dunford has a reputation
among Marines as a thoughtful, calm leader with more than 22 months
under his belt of commanding troops in Iraq.
These changes come amid debate about impending budget cuts that some say would have grave consequences for the military. Sequestration
is a series of automatic, across-the-board cuts to government agencies,
totaling $1.2 trillion over 10 years. The cuts would be split 50-50
between defense and domestic discretionary spending.
More than $500 billion
would be cut from the Defense Department and other national security
agencies, with the rest cut on the domestic side in areas such as
national parks, federal courts, the FBI, food inspections and housing
aid.
Outgoing Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has been a harsh critic of the cuts.
"For those of you who
have ever seen 'Blazing Saddles,' " he said in a recent speech at
Georgetown University, there "is the scene of the sheriff putting the
gun to his head in order to establish law and order. That is
sequestration."
