Afghanistan

With the Iraq war ending and an Afghanistan exit in sight, the Marine Corps is beginning a historic shift, returning to its roots as a seafaring force that will get smaller, lighter and, it hopes, less bogged down in land wars. This moment of change happens to coincide with a reorienting of American security priorities to the Asia-Pacific region, where China has been building military muscle during a decade of U.S. preoccupation in the greater Middle East. That suits the Marines, who see the Pacific as a home away from home.

All French combat troops will pull out of Afghanistan by the end of the year, France's new president said in Kabul Friday, but some trainers will remain to help Afghanistan's nascent security forces. Francois Hollande said that France's troops have carried out their mission in Afghanistan and it is time for them to leave, an early pullout that will be coordinated with the United States and other allies. "There will be no combat troops" after the end of the year, Hollande said during a joint news conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

President Barack Obama and NATO allies declared Sunday that the end of the long and unpopular Afghanistan war is in sight even as they struggled to hold their fighting force together in the face of dwindling patience and shaky unity. From his hometown and the city where his re-election operation hums, Obama spoke of a post-2014 world when "the Afghan war as we understand it is over. " Until then, though, remaining U.S. and allied troops face the continued likelihood of fierce combat.

France's new President Francois Hollande arrived early Friday in Afghanistan to meet with troops and the country's president and discuss plans for an early pullout. Hollande's office confirmed the arrival in a statement. The trip was not announced in advance for security reasons. Hollande will meet with some of the 3,300 French troops in Afghanistan and Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the statement said. Hollande announced plans at a NATO summit this week to pull out French troops by the end of the year, well ahead of the alliance's 2014 withdrawal date.

NATO's secretary-general says he's optimistic that the international community will continue to finance the Afghan security forces. "This summit is not a pledging conference, but nevertheless a number of countries have announced substantial contributions to the Afghan security forces, so I'm optimistic," Anders Fogh Rasmussen told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. The international community in general has a responsibility and interest in ensuring the Afghan forces take full responsibility for the country's security after 2014 to prevent terrorists from reestablishing safe...

NATO on Tuesday invited Pakistan's president to the upcoming Chicago summit on Afghanistan, the strongest sign yet that Islamabad is ready to reopen its western border to U.S. and NATO military supplies heading to the war in the neighboring country. President Asif Ali Zardari was expected to accept the invitation, a Pakistani official in Washington said. Pakistan blocked the routes in November after American airstrikes killed 24 of its troops on the Afghan border. The attack sent ties between Washington and Islamabad to new lows, threatening regional...

The NATO summit's plan to "responsibly wind down" the Afghan war is not entirely in the hands of President Barack Obama and his fellow world leaders. The carefully orchestrated exit strategy could come unhinged if the resilient Taliban stage a major comeback or Afghanistan's neighbors interfere with the process to bolster their position in a weak country soon to be without thousands of international combat troops. In short, the Taliban, Pakistan and Iran still get a vote.

The House endorsed the continued war in Afghanistan on Thursday despite acknowledgment from Republicans and Democrats that the American people are war-weary after more than a decade of conflict. By a vote of 303-113, lawmakers rejected an amendment that would have swiftly ended combat operations in Afghanistan by limiting funds only to the "safe and orderly withdrawal of U.S. troops and military contractors from Afghanistan. " More than 10 years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, American public support for the overseas conflict has deteriorated.

TORA, Afghanistan - As soon as the French Foreign Legion moved in this summer, some of the men climbed on the roof of the base headquarters and painted the force’s Latin motto in big white letters. “Legio Patria Nostra.’’ The legion is our homeland. Home has been in many far-flung places for legionnaires during their storied 178-year history - North Africa, the Far East, Mexico, and now the foothills of the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan as part of NATO’s US-led International Security Force.

HARTFORD - Governor Dannel P. Malloy continued his surprise overseas mission yesterday, visiting service members stationed in Afghanistan as part of a Department of Defense program for governors. The Connecticut governor's visit was kept secret until yesterday for security reasons. He was in Kuwait Tuesday. In a conference call from Afghanistan, Malloy said he has been able to meet with several Connecticut residents during his trip, including regular service members and members of the Connecticut National Guard.

WASHINGTON - Ryan Crocker, the unflappable diplomat who became the civilian face of America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan over two administrations, is stepping down as ambassador to Afghanistan and retiring from the US foreign service after a storied tenure in some of the world's most dangerous hotspots. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Tuesday that the 62-year-old veteran envoy would leave his post in Kabul this summer because of health reasons she declined to detail.

A U.S. drone fired two missiles at a compound in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday, killing four suspected militants in an attack that comes as Washington is running out of patience with Islamabad's refusal to reopen supply routes for NATO troops in Afghanistan. U.S. drone strikes have complicated negotiations over the routes, which Pakistan closed six months ago in retaliation for U.S. airstrikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers along the Afghan border. Pakistan's parliament demanded the strikes stop in the wake of the attack, but the U.S. has refused.

CHICAGO — NATO leaders formally agreed Monday on a framework for winding down their combat mission in Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and made commitments on the length and ambition of their role there long afterward. Under the agreement, NATO allies will turn over the main responsibility for providing security to Afghan forces next year, beginning the end of foreign involvement in the decade-long war. "In the course of 2013, we expect Afghan forces to be in the lead for combat operations across the country," NATO's secretary general, Anders...

New Zealand says it will withdraw its small contingent of troops from Afghanistan a year earlier than planned. Prime Minister John Key told reporters Tuesday that the 145 New Zealand troops stationed in Bamiyan province will come home in late 2013 rather than 2014. New Zealand has stationed troops in the war-torn country since 2003, with five dying there during that time. Key says New Zealand made the decision in consultation with its coalition partners. He says the United States wants to see an orderly transition as NATO allies begin planning a withdrawal of all troops by the end...

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Veteran US diplomat Ryan Crocker will be leaving his post as ambassador to Afghanistan this summer, an embassy spokesman said Tuesday. Crocker, 62, came out of retirement last July to take over the post after a request from President Barack Obama. Crocker was widely known for his role as US ambassador to Iraq from 2007 to 2009. It is unclear why he is leaving the post a year ahead of schedule or who will replace him. The most likely candidate would be James Cunningham, one of four other ambassadors serving under Crocker in Kabul.

Veteran U.S. diplomat Ryan Crocker will be leaving his post as ambassador to Afghanistan this summer, an embassy spokesman said Tuesday. Crocker, 62, came out of retirement last July to take over the post after a request from President Barack Obama. Crocker was widely known for his role as U.S. ambassador to Iraq from 2007 to 2009. It is unclear why he is leaving the post a year ahead of schedule or who will replace him. The most likely candidate would be James Cunningham, one of four other ambassadors serving under Crocker in Kabul.

WASHINGTON - Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced yesterday that the size of the Army will be increased temporarily by 22,000 soldiers to help meet the needs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other missions around the world. This is the second time since 2007 that the military has determined it does not have a large enough force. Gates had already increased the size of the Army and Marine Corps shortly after taking the Pentagon job. Gates noted that while progress in Iraq will lead to a reduction in the number of troops there, more troops are needed in Afghanistan because...

The NATO summit's plan to "responsibly wind down" the Afghan war is not entirely in the hands of President Barack Obama and his fellow world leaders. The carefully orchestrated exit strategy could come unhinged if the resilient Taliban stage a major comeback or Afghanistan's neighbors interfere with the process to bolster their position in a weak country soon to be without thousands of international combat troops. In short, the Taliban, Pakistan and Iran still get a vote.

CHICAGO - President Obama was struggling to balance the United States' relationship with two crucial but difficult allies Sunday, after a deal to reopen supply lines through Pakistan to Afghanistan fell apart just as Obama began talks on ending the NATO alliance's combat role in the Afghan war. As a two-day NATO summit meeting opened in Chicago, Obama remained at loggerheads with President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan, refusing even...