WASHINGTON (March 7) - President Barack Obama says he hopes U.S. troops can identify moderate elements of the Taliban and move them toward reconciliation.
Asked in an interview with The New York Times if the United States is winning in Afghanistan, Obama said "no," while adding "our troops are doing an extraordinary job in a very difficult situation."
"But you've seen conditions deteriorate over the last couple of years. The Taliban is bolder than it was. I think ... in the southern regions of the country, you're seeing them attack in ways that we have not seen previously," Obama said in the interview, which was posted Saturday on the Times' Web site.
There may be opportunities to reach out to moderates in the Taliban, but the situation in Afghanistan is more complicated than the challenges the American military faced in Iraq, Obama said.
That would be a sharp departure from the tactics of the Bush administration.
U.S. troops were able to persuade Sunni Muslim insurgents in Iraq to cooperate in some instances because they had been alienated by the tactics of al-Qaida terrorists.
Obama cautioned that Afghanistan is a less-governed region with a history of fierce independence among tribes, creating a tough set of circumstances for the United States to deal with.
http://news.aol.com/main/obama-presidency/article/obama-afghanistan-taliban/373693
