One of the lessons of Vietnam," said Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., "is if you are going to send American forces into harm's way, you don't do it in a limited way. You don't do it tying hands behind your back ahead of time. You don't ask people to give their lives for something less than the prospect of success." ...more

November 8, 2009

The United States plans to withdraw most of its troops from Iraq by August 2010, 19 months after President Barack Obama's inauguration, according to administration officials. ...more

February 24, 2009

Afghans were paying close attention last week when Barack Obama was sworn in. After all, Obama has pledged to move Afghanistan to center stage in his new administration's foreign policy concerns. ...more

January 27, 2009

The top U.S. military officer said Saturday that the Pentagon could double the number of American forces in Afghanistan by next summer to 60,000 — the largest estimate of potential reinforcements ever publicly suggested. ...more

December 20, 2008

1 U.S. troop death in Afghanistan in November, compared with 16 in October ...more

December 2, 2008

A heated parliamentary debate on the U.S.-Iraq security treaty was called to an early close Wednesday as lawmakers loyal to anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr scuffled with security guards for the foreign minister and the speaker of the legislature and his two deputies. ...more

November 20, 2008

One of the lessons learned in Vietnam was that it is possible to take issues away from the enemy and turn them to your advantage. Two programs, originated with the U.S. Agency for International Development, and had a substantial impact on the course of the war. ...more

November 5, 2008

U.S. military helicopters launched an extremely rare attack Sunday on Syrian territory close to the border with Iraq, killing eight people in a strike the government in Damascus condemned as "serious aggression." ...more

October 26, 2008

Iraq's prime minister said Friday that the country's most influential Shiite cleric will leave the decision on the future of U.S. troops to the government and parliament, a step that could remove a major obstacle to a deal. ...more

October 11, 2008

Iraq's foreign minister said Tuesday it will take "bold political decisions" to resolve a major issue in the way of a deal allowing American forces to stay next year: Who will try U.S. troops accused of crimes. The United States wants exclusive right to prosecute troops, but Iraqis want some jurisdiction over them. ...more

October 8, 2008