| ...so the Germans can march in the shade. |
| Why should France stay when America's president is already committed to leaving? This is one of those hoist with/by his own petard thingies, only the rest of us get to enjoy the sensation, too. Given how often President Obama has demonstrated stereotypical American cowboy ignorance -- remember the speech at the UN about Iran, when he already knew what we only found out later? -- I can't blame President Sarkozy for not trusting the man to get it right this time, for all he seems to be turning into Bush 3. |
| That doesn't make a bit of sense. He wants to use Karzai's foot-dragging and bin-Laden's threat (made from beyond the void) to cut and run. |
France has about 3,500 troops in Afghanistan, although the U.S.-led war has been largely unpopular in the country. At least 50 French soldiers in Afghanistan have been killed since 2001.
"I am convinced that the beginning of a gradual withdrawal of international troops from the summer of 2011 would keep the pressure on the Afghan authorities by indicating that our commitment is not unlimited," Poniatowski said in a statement.
The presence of French troops in Afghanistan is a factor contributing to a heightened state of vigilance in France against a possible attack by Islamic militants.
Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden warned on Friday that French President Nicolas Sarkozy's refusal to remove its forces from Afghanistan gave his followers a green light to kill French hostages held around the world. Bin Laden's warning -- his second targeting French policy -- was made in an audio clip broadcast by al-Jazeera television and could not be independently verified.
Foreign ministry spokesman Bernard Valero said France remained committed to the international force in Afghanistan.