Obama adds Afghanistan meeting to Monday schedule
U.S. Army Sergeant Salei Sale (L) of A-BTRY 2/377 PFAR Task Force Steel looks on as other soldiers fire their weapons during a training session at Forward Operating Base (FOB) Tillman, November 23, 2009.
Credit: Reuters/Bruno Domingos
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama added a Monday night meeting with top advisers on Afghanistan to his schedule as he closes in on a decision on whether to send more U.S. troops.
The White House said Obama would meet Vice President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and other officials at an 8 p.m. EST/0100 GMT Tuesday meeting in the Situation Room.
Previous meetings on Afghanistan have been during normal business hours instead of at night. Obama had a crowded schedule Monday and he is hosting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday.
Obama is said to be nearing a decision on whether to add as many as 40,000 troops to the eight-year-old war. With the U.S. capital shutting down for the Thanksgiving holiday this week, Obama is not expected to announce his plans until next week at the earliest.
The president has been reviewing war strategy in Afghanistan for the past two months after U.S. Army General Stanley McChrystal said in a report to him that conditions were deteriorating and more troops were needed.
Obama and his advisers have debated options ranging from sending tens of thousands more troops to limiting troop increases and concentrating on attacking al Qaeda targets.
One factor that has complicated the deliberations has been concerns about corruption in Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai's government. Obama has said he wants to ensure he has a reliable partner there.
(Reporting by Steve Holland, editing by Jackie Frank)
