Obama To Keep 5,500 Troops In Afghanistan

Published October 15, 2015 at 12:06 PM EDT

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A U.S. soldier directs his colleague at the site of a bomb attack that targeted several armored vehicles belonging to forces attached to the NATO Resolute Support Mission, in downtown of Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015. Gen. Abdul Rahman Rahimi, the Kabul city police chief, said that three Afghan civilians were wounded in the attack that damaged one of the vehicles but caused no fatalities. (Massoud Hossaini/AP)

President Barack Obama, who campaigned on ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, announced today that he will keep 5,500 troops in Afghanistan, in addition to the small force that will remain on guard at the U.S. embassy.

The decision to leave more troops than planned comes after Taliban fighters took control of the Afghan city of Kunduz last month. Today, Taliban insurgents overran two checkpoints in southern Afghanistan, killing 29 border officers.

Here & Now’s security analyst Jim Walsh discusses the policy decision with host Robin Young.

Guest

Jim Walsh, security analyst and a research associate at MIT’s Security Studies Program. He tweets at @drjimwalshmit.