Obama to "accelerate" war efforts in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack will announce "an acceleration" of war efforts in Afghanistan to defeat terrorism when he addresses the nation on his new strategy in that country, his spokesman said Tuesday.

That means both the deployment of 30,000 to 35,000 additional troops to Afghanistan and the transfer of security responsibility from U.S. forces to Afghan forces will be accelerated, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said on NBC.

"This will not be nation-building. This will not be an open-ended commitment," he stressed.

Obama called Afghan President Hamid Karzai Monday night to brief him on the plan, Gibbs said.

The White House said last week that Obama will address the nation on Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. eastern time (0100 GMT Wednesday) from the military academy at West Point.

As the public is turning negative toward the Afghan war and his fellow Democrats are increasingly vocal in their opposition to a troops buildup in Afghanistan, the incoming decision is regarded as one of the most critical moment to shape his presidency.

Obama ordered to send 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan in March and U.S. troop levels there has grown to 68,000.

However, as the situation in Afghanistan deteriorates, Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, has been calling for 40,000 more troops since August to quell the insurgency led by Taliban.

Obama has held 10 sessions with his war council on Afghan strategy since then and weighed several options for bolstering the American contingent.