Gone are the days of Bush's failed "cowboy/go it alone" military strategies, or are they? The chants of "Bring our troops home now" rarely if ever heard anymore. I haven't heard a peep out of the Code Pinkers since the inauguration. The Iraq conflict merely written off as a "distraction" by Obama, claiming the real "war on terror"... ooops... my apologies for using an term no longer used in the white house (according the Secretary of State Hillary Rodham-Clinton http://washingtontimes.com/weblogs/kralev-diplomacy/2009/Mar/30/clinton-us-no-longer-uses-war-on-terror/)... whatever it's called now, is in Afghanistan (according to Obama).

"Barack Obama made an impassioned plea to America’s allies to send more troops to Afghanistan, warning that failure to do so would leave Europe vulnerable to more terrorist atrocities."

"But though he continued to dazzle Europeans on his debut international tour, the Continent’s leaders turned their backs on the US President."

"Gordon Brown was the only one to offer substantial help. He offered to send several hundred extra British soldiers to provide security during the August election, but even that fell short of the thousands of combat troops that the US was hoping to prise from the Prime Minister."

"Just two other allies made firm offers of troops. Belgium offered to send 35 military trainers and Spain offered 12. Mr Obama’s host, Nicolas Sarkozy, refused his request."

"Mr Obama – who has pledged 21,000 more troops to combat the growing insurgency and is under pressure from generals to supply up to 10,000 more..."

"The presidential charm offensive failed to move fellow Nato countries."

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6032342.ece

interesting

Ive said this before. The people love him, but the leaders are wary of him.

Most of the Nato countries are tapped out.
Canada, and France don't have the troop strength to add additional forces. They have already been fighting in Afghanistan for 8 yrs while the US was more concerned with Iraq!

They are tired and its hard to convince them that now, 8 years later, we are finally serious about fighting the Taliban!

"Germany and France each have about 3,000 troops in Afghanistan, but they are barred from participating in the heavy fighting in southern and eastern Afghanistan, where the Taliban has re- established a presence."

3000 non combat troops and they are tapped out?


http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/southasia/features/article_1467632.php/Does_European_affection_for_Obama_mean_more_for_Afghanistan__Feature__

The American Military is NATO.

Besides Afghanistan France also has troops committed in other places.

For example,
Bush pulled almost every troop we had out of Kosovo/Serbia/Bosnia (21,000-I think) and sent them to Iraq.
Who do you think replaced them?

Besides,
Trust is not something so easily given.
Bush pretty much ruined trust in American foreign policy.

Obama will have to work hard to earn it back.
Esp when one starts talking about the life's of a country's young men and women!