and president ashraf ghani is anticipating a difficult fighting season. >> president ashraf ghani explaining one of the reasons why he wanted the americans to stay longer. saying that it would help the afghan army continue training and consolidation as a fighting force. >> we put a lot of money and time into the army. difference? >> well, we are a decade and 65 billion in. it's the american side. there are a lot of skills of the forces. they need to learn, and they feel they need to lose a lot of time. they were long political steal mates and they were hoping that the n.a.t.o. forces would help the afghan forces with logistics, intelligence gathering, medical training. that they can help with in the next 6-8 months. the air force, the air power - that's a problem for the afghan security force, and that's a reason the taliban has been successful because they can gather. before, when n.a.t.o. helped with the combat mission, they could call in air strikes. not the case here. the 10,000 u.s. forces are here, 6,000 are part of the train and assist mission. the rest is part of a counterterrorism m

and president ashraf ghani is anticipating a difficult fighting season. >> president ashraf ghani explaining one of the reasons why he wanted the americans to stay longer. saying that it would help the afghan army continue training and consolidation as a fighting force. >> we put a lot of money and time into the army. will another six months make a difference? >> well, we are a decade and 65 billion in. it's the american side. there are a lot of skills of the forces. they need to learn, and they feel they need to lose a lot of time. they were long political steal mates and they were hoping that the n.a.t.o. forces would help the afghan forces with logistics, intelligence gathering, medical training. that they can help with in the next 6-8 months. the air force, the air power - that's a problem for the afghan security force, and that's a reason the taliban has been successful because they can gather. before, when n.a.t.o. helped with the combat mission, they could call in air strikes. not the case here. the 10,000 u.s. forces are here 6,000 are part of the train and assist mission. the rest i

president ashraf ghani, c.e.o. abdul ghani and others will meet with president obama to discuss security economic development and afghanistan's reconciliation process and will address congress. rosalind jordan has a preview of the talks. >> reporter: when afghan president garmin sharp -- ashraf ghani meets with u.s. security is top of mind. he wants president obama to delay plans to withdraw troops by the end of 2015. the top u.s. general in afghanistan is inclined to do so. >> i'm concerned about the summer 2015. this is the first fighting seen on their open. >> reporter: ashraf ghani is trying to relaunch peace talks and is worried about threats from al qaeda and local militia and is worried that i.s.i.l. may be trying to move in. we believe the presence of i.s.i.l. is the regranting of -- rebranding of taliban. we are taking it seriously. >>> forces are in afghanistan to train and support the military. president obama planned to cut the number to 5600 by the end of the year. then withdrawing the rest by 2016, le

as much as we would like ashraf ghani. he's been in office for five months and it's a coalition government that he's a part of. how is that government doing? >> well, right now i think a lot of folks are disappointed, some of the things that they had hoped for, some of the early reforms promised haven't materialized or as quickly as i think that citizens hoped for. the cabinet that he needed to appoint took over 100 days to appoint that cabinet. and the full cabinet is not sitting a number of months after taking office. iven the lack of functioning of the new coalition government. how much of a risk is the united states taking. having the president say we'll expand the troops through another year. >> well, i think, you know, it's a chicken and egg. it's a bit of a dithing. of course from the u.s. standpoint, you know, the government needs reassurances that, in fact, the unity government is going to succeed. at the same time what the u.s. is doing here is in a sense trying to underwrite stability. we have no government stab

in that sea of senators and congressmen is afghan president ashraf ghani. he has just completed a joint meeting of congress. we wishes to convey the message of self reliance that the afghan people wish to if you would break the yolk of independence of the united states and others who have been there for so long 12 years to be exact. mike viqueira joins me now. he was taking pains to thank the united states for staying in afghanistan. >> you are right, del. i counted no fewer than eight times that he said thank you to the united states the military sacrifice, the economic sacrifice, the sacrifice of the american taxpayers you name it. it was a rosy picture of afghanistan he sought to paint today. an enlightened afghanistan, capable of providing its own security. and the familiar phrase that afghanistan is the graveyard of empires. he says it is the graveyard of al-qaeda and other elements seeking to deablelize the region. he said overall that -- it was a very forward-looking speech i think. obviously playing to an american audience. how much of that speech d

president ashraf ghani: thank you. announcer: ladies and gentlemen police remain in your seats until the delegations have the arctic. thank you. announcer: the afghan president will address a joint meeting of congress on wednesday. you can see his remarks live from the u.s. house of representatives at 10:45 a.m. eastern time here on c-span. announcer: coming up tonight on c-span, ohio governor john kasich, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, speaks in new hampshire. then the u.s. house the base the 2016 budget proposal. later, another chance to see president obama's joint news conference with the visiting afghan president. announcer: on the next washington journal, congressman frank lobiondo of new jersey is here to discuss the war powers debate and the united states -issa strategy. after that, congress meant to run of ohio talks about the house debate of the 2016 gop budget proposal. later, a look at the fiscal health of state and the impact of congress in washington on state budgets. our guest our debit lillard

ashraf ghani is that country's new president. he has been in office for five months, and he is urging the obama administration face-to-face to keep american trooping in his country. mike viqueira has the latest from washington. mike? >> reporter: david in addition to all of that ashraf ghani has one big advantage, and that is he is not his predecessor who had a notoriously poor relationship with george bush and then barack obama. but it's a new set of leaders visiting washington now, and many are hoping on both sides that it opens a new era. it's designed at a show of unity and commitment from both sides. three days in washington for afghanistan's leaders, as american forces prepare to leave their country. after a day of high-level meetings defense secretary ash carter made a new commitment american funding of an afghan force of 352,000. >> by pinning one thing down which is the overall number in 2017, that's a way of providing some stability to the afghan security forces and a perspective into the future. >> reporter: that money

ashraf ghani. ♪ mark: welcome back to "bottom line." a french interior ministry official is telling the associated press that the black rocks has been located on the side of the french alps where a plane crashed from barcelona to dusseldorf. facebook may get in the news business of sorts. the new york times says facebook has held talks with half a dozen you companies. facebook me start testing in the next few months. as first potential partners "the new york times," national geographic and buzz feed. rowland smith may get up to $47 million following office depot's planned sale to staples, including more than $39 million in equity awards. smith will get almost $8 million more if his role changes after the acquisition. office depot shares are up 79% since smith became ceo in november 2013. coming up, president obama and afghan president ostroff ghani hold a press -- ppresident after ashraf ghani. the two have been meeting throughout the morning. i request from president ghani to stall the withdrawa

. >> ashraf ghani praises the u.s. for its commitment to afghanistan. >>> on the brink of civil war. fighting spirals out of control in yemen and the u.s. evacuation vearkz evacuates its reamg special remaining special forces. >>> and legacy of lee quan yew. singapore making it one of the most important financial centers of the world. good evening and thank you for joinsjoining us on al jazeera america, i'm antonio mora. >> and i'm stephanie sy. tomorrow ashraf ghani has an open meeting with president obama. >> but today ghani had a meeting with secretary of state john kerry. >> this is a major statement. of support our armed forces and our security forces are going to greet this, with enormous welcome. because it gives them the assurance that the resolute support mission is continuing and that we are able to focus. on our key priorities. >> now on wednesday ghani will address a joint meeting of congress. jamie mcintire has a report. >> security was tight tithe even by security standards. center courtyard to hear afgha

a senior advisor to president ashraf ghani good of you to join us. thank you. >> thank you >>> growing protests in afghanistan over the mob killing of an innocent woman. thousands of people marched through the streets of kabul chanting "justice for fawqunda", and death to the killers. the 27-year-old religious scholar was killed in a mob attack after being falsely accused of burning the koran. 28 people today have been arrested, and 13 police officers suspended >>> for decades afghanistan has been a land of harsh realities for the u.s. and allies and the soviets in the 1980s. next in our in-content segment. lessons and withdrawal from afghanistan. >> in our off the radar - another north african nation faces the threat of the i.s.i.l. attacks. afghanistan - it's been more than a quarter of a century since the soviet union pulled out its citizens. the united states spent billions funding religious rebels who fought the soviets, but after they withdraw the u.s. mostly ignored afghanistan, and that opened the door to the taliban and al-qaeda. we look at

will ashraf ghani will warmly received by congress? >> i think he will be. this is the third of three days in washington. a visit really designed to show the new unity between the united states and the afghan government. remember one of the biggest things that ashraf ghani has going for him is he's not his predecessor, the man who had a notoriously bad relationship with not only president obama, but president bush as well.. now we have this new agreement in afghanistan. ghani now the president, the head of state. he'll be addressing the joint meeting of congress set to begin in just a few moments here. and dr. abdullah abdullah it was a bitter divide after allegations of fraud. now it's all sunshine and lollipops if you are to believe the staging and the stage craft that we have seen over the last three days. ashraf ghani has been very careful to thank the united states, the people of the united states, even going so far as to thank the taxpayers of the united states over the course of his three visits here. noting the number of american dead. that number 2,

washington knows ashraf ghani. he worked at the world bank a couple blocks from the white house, where we're standing now. the people at the white house here know him well. they have high hopes for him. obviously the relationship was very different with former afghan president hamid karzai who would not sign that bilateral security agreement. ashraf ghani comes in he signs that security agreement. the question is whether or not, woman wolf he gets something in return. one thing he wants is a slow down in this reduction of u.s. forces in afghanistan. there are roughly 10,000 right now. the president announced a plan to have that by the end of this year. now that is on the negotiating table. the president may decide and we may hear about this coming up at this news conference within the next hour that he has decided to slow down that withdraw of u.s. forces. one thing that has been made clear to me wolf is by the end of his presidency by the end of 2016 heading into 2017 the president still does intend to pretty much

roslind jordan reports. >> when afghan president ashraf ghani meets with u.s. officials on monday, security will be the top of his mind. he wants president barack obama to delay plans to withdraw troops by 2015. the top u.s. general in afghanistan is inclineed to do so. >> i'm particularly concerned about the summer of 2015 for the afghans. this is the first fighting season completely on their own. >> ashraf ghani is worried about the threat of al-qaeda and local militias. he is also very worried that isil might be trying to move in. >> we believe that the major presence of isil and rebranding, we take this threat with its dangerous rhetoric seriously. >> right now forces are in afghanistan to train and support the military. president obama had planned to cut the number to 5600 by the end of this year. and then withdraw the rest by the end of 2016. leaving behind a small number of troops to protect the u.s. embassy. the fear is that the afghan military will crumble. something that the new u.s. defense secretary acknowledged on a recent trip. >> president obama

>> president obama, president ashraf ghani just concluding their meeting here at the white house. we expect statement as short while from now. we gotten a joint statement from the two countries based on president ghani's request for flexibility in the u.s. drawdown the u.s. will maintain current posture of 9800 troops through the end of 2015. specific trajectory of the 2016 u.s. troop drawdown will be established later this year, in a troop consolidation to kabul based embassy presence in 2016. the thought that the u.s. would have 1000 troops at the end of president obama's second term. going forward mostly to guard the u.s. embassy staff in kabul. we expect two will come out shortly. take some questions after they make their statements on this first visit by ashraf ghani as president of afghanistan, to the u.s. he did work here for 15 years at the world bank. melissa? melissa: thank you so much for that. let's get a quick check on the markets while all this is going on. stocks at session lows right here of the dow is down, you can see there about 86 points. nicole petallides at f

afghan president ashraf ghani is asking for a slower drawdown, keeping current levels around 10,000. the plan is to cut the number in half. ashraf ghani is expected to get his answer from president obama at the white house tuesday. >> two years ago there were 130,000 u.s. and international troops in afghanistan. now there are around 12,000. there is one part of the plan president obama said he will not change. u.s. troops will be out by 2017. it's an arbitrary deadline. in a statement, it's been warned without a u.s. troop presence afghanistan risks becoming another iraq. >> we must not repeat this mistake. that is what will happen if president obama insists on withdrawing from afghanistan - whether the job is done or not. monday, the white house stood firm. the president is mindful of making a substantial troops to afghanistan. again, it's not in our national security interest. >> ashraf ghani sounded an alarm in its speech - i.s.i.l. has its sights set on afghanistan. the principal foe it taliban, and they plan to open talks soon. overall, the goal for afghanistan is to stand on it

guest: ashraf ghani is very worried. though he has been a breath of fresh air, the fact of the matter is he is worried the united states will pull the carpet on -- carpet out from underneath him. the money is drying up. when i was in afghanistan, people were concerned that no matter how sincere ashraf ghani could be people would look at international aid as a reason to embezzle money quicker. likewise, if you have international agencies pullout, and this is where ashraf ghani is truly worried, the only other jobs people can go to is the illegal economy, the narcotics trade. that is ceballos is with terrorism can't -- ceballos is with terrorism, and ultimately, ashraf ghani can worry about the spread of the islamic state there. people can say what does the islamic state have to do with afghanistan? the reality is what did al qaeda have to do with afghanistan? this is a major concern. i spent time with the taliban in 2000, and the biggest difference between the taliban and the islamic state is the taliban was desperate for

they've been buoyed by the election of ashraf ghani and buoyed by the tone he's setting. again and again on this visit he's expressed gratitude to the u.s. for its support, and to american forces for their sacrifices. >> our army corps have changed fundamentally as a result of contracting with you. >> reporter: ghani has also outlined the challenges his unity government faces from corruption to widespread poverty to gender disparities. case in point, the fatal beating of a woman last week by a mob of men in kabul, following false allegations she burned a copy of the koran. then there's security. the taliban remains a threat even as u.s. and afghan officials try to work out a framework for peace talks. more bloodshed is expected with the arrival of spring known as the fighting season. the islamic state group is a problem, too. it spread its tentacles from syria and iraq to afghanistan. still, despite the hurdles ahead, u.s. secretary of state john kerry spoke of the progress that's been made over the years. >> life expectancy has risen by 20 years. health care access has i

cnn has just confirmed that at ashraf ghani's request, the u.s. will maintain its current troop level of nearly 10,000 u.s. military personnel in afghanistan, at least through the end of this year. there are almost exactly 9800 u.s. troops providing what's described as training and support in afghanistan. that number was supposed to be reduced to about 5500 by year's end with a complete withdrawal of all u.s. military personnel by the end of 2016 at least early 2017. i know the leaders are about to walk in. jim acosta is there in the east room of the white house. jim, set the stage for us. >> that's right, wolf. as you mentioned just a few moments ago, the white house indicating there will be some news in this news concerns coming up in just a few minutes. the president will announce that he has decided after meeting with the new afghan president, ashraf ghani, that he will be keeping approximately 9800 u.s. troops in afghanistan. that's the number that is currently there right now. the plan had originally been for the president to draw down that

president ashraf ghani abdalla abdalla, and others ghani will also address congress on his visit. >> when ashraf ghani meets with officials on monday, his country's security will be top of mind. he wants president obama to delay withdrawal of troops. >> i'm particularly concerned about the summer 2015, the afghans, the first fighting season plement public health on their own. >> glain is trying to -- ghani is trying to relaunch talk with the taliban he is worried that i.s.i.l. may be trying to move in. >> we believe that the 98 sent nascent threat of i.s.i.l. >> about 9800 u.s. forces are in afghanistan to train the military, then withdrawing the rest by the end of 2016 leaving behind a small number of troops to protect the u.s. embassy. the fear is that the afghan military will crumble something the new u.s. defense secretary acknowledged on a recent trip. >> president obama is considering a number of options to reinforce our support for president ghani's security strategy including possible changes in the time line for our draw down of u.s. troops. >> some analysts feel the obama a

we are joined from kabul by ashraf ghani, president of afghanistan. mr. president, thank you for being on. >> it's a pleasure to be with you and the american people. >> you have reportedly told the administration senior administration official says you would like flexibility in the timetable of the withdrawal of american troops. right now there are 10,000 troops. in two years they go to zero. what would you like to see. two years from now, how many american troops do you think should still be in afghanistan. >> the decision on the number of american troops is up to the president of the united states and the congress of the united states. we're very satisfied with the way the noncombat mission is shaping. but the primary duty of extending afghanistan, securing its future is that of the afghan people afghan soldiers policeman, and that of of the afghan government. >> but mr. president, last year 2014 was the year of the worst casualties for the afghan army and the national police force in the 13-year war. you have almost three dozen, 700 civilians that died

the request came from that country's president ashraf ghani, who was at the white house today. mike. >> good evening to you david. in many ways, the visit of ashraf ghani is taking on the air of a charm offensive >> reporter:offensive, and so far it appears to be working. >> everybody have a seat. >> on his second day ashraf ghani got what he came for. >> i decided that we will continue our posture through the end of the year. >> president obama had planned to cut that number in half, and instead, he's extending his timetable. he it said it was the right decision. >> it's a guarantee that the investment of the last 14 years pay off in terms of gains. >> u.s. forces will also continue to lead counter terror operations. the announcement came after the two leaders met in the oval office. and after a somber morning visit to arlington. where he put a wreath to the unknown soldier. it's all designed to boost confidence in afghanistan's ability to eventually take care of itself. four years ago, there were 100,000 american troops in afghanistan. and now the number is 10,000. >> it's th

kerry had to return to the states for a meeting will afghan president ashraf ghani. and giving p-5 plus one to make sure their position is unified before they return. it is emerged in recent days that france is taking a much more hawkish line than others. james bays, al jazeera lausanne. >> talks have resumed in morocco to try resolve libya's political crisis. u.n. envoy coordinating the talks says the pressure is on to find a solution. >> this should be a decisive moment because as we, i said before in previous meetings, running out of time. in the past days we have seen more fighting, we have seen air strikes, we have seen more actions by daesh. not only in libya but also in the region. >> a ceremony has just been held to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the battle of iwo jima. the two countries have marked the battle together for decades. >> meanwhile, foreign ministers are south korea and japan are meeting in seoul. they are aiming to resolve regional tensions, the sankaku islands are are among the areas claimed by both korea and japan. leadership summit betwe

roslind jordan reports. >> reporter: when afghan president ashraf ghani meets with u.s. officials on monday, he wants u.s. president barack obama to delay his plans to withdraw troops by 2018. >> i'm deeply concerned about the summer of 2015. for the afghans this is the first fighting season completely on their own. >> ghani is worried about the threat from al-qaeda and local militias, and he's also very worried that isil might be trying to move in. >> we believe this represents a rebranding of a few marginalized taliban. but we're taking this seriously. >> reporter: right now about 9800 u.s. forces are in afghanistan to train and support the afghan military. president obama had planned to cut that number to 5600 by the end of this year. and then withdraw the rest by the end of 2016. leaving behind a small number of troops to protect the u.s. embassy. the fear is that the afghan military will crumble, something that the new u.s. defense secretary admitted. >> reinforce our support for president ghani's strategy, including possible changes to the timeline for the draw dow

ashraf ghani knows that is not what he wants for the next couple years. he wants as much help as he can get from the pentagon. wolf? >> barbara starr at the pentagon. i want to bring in retired lieutenant colonel rick francone to get his analysis. a lot of military analysts i've spoken to say when all is said and done it doesn't make any difference if the u.s. pulls out this year next year or early 2017. afghanistan's going to be a disaster for the time being given the taliban there, al qaeda there, now isis moving in. the historic tensions that have been going on for decades, maybe for centuries. if the u.s. completely pulls out at some point, afghanistan is going to wind up like iraq is right now. your analysis? >> that could be the case. however, i think it's important that the u.s. troops stay there as long as they need to. i'm very disturbed by this date certain that the president seems to have put on this. he wants everybody out of there by the end of 2016. we had this problem before. we did it in iraq. we did it in afghanistan. we tell the bad guys

we are joined from kabul by ashraf ghani, president of afghanistan. mr. president, thank you for being on. >> it's a pleasure to be with you and the american people. >> you have reportedly told the administration, senior administration official says you would like flexibility in the timetable for the withdrawal of american troops. right now there are 10,000 troops. in two years they go to zero. what would you like to see. two years from now, how many american troops do you think should still be in afghanistan? >> the decision on the number of american troops is up to the president of the united states and the congress of the united states. we're very satisfied with the way the noncombat mission is shaping. but the primary duty of defending afghanistan, securing its future is that of the afghan people afghan soldiers policemen, and that of the afghan government. >> but mr. president, last year, 2014 was the year of the worst casualties for the afghan army and the national police force in the 13-year war. you have almost three dozen, 700 civilians that died

the announcement comes before elections in may >>> now, afghanistan's president ashraf ghani is on his first visit to the u.s. since assuming power last year. he spent the first day at camp david in talks with the u.s. secretary of state. on the agenda the long-term survival of afghanistan. rosalind jordan has this update. >> u.s. secretary of state john kerry, and defense secretary ashton carter spent all day meeting with afghan president ashraf ghani, and the chief executive officer abdul ghani at a place for the signing of treaties, camp dazed. the purpose was to find practical ways that the u.s. could support afghanistan as it tries to become more self-sufficient. this is what the secretary of state john kerrry had to say about the meetings. >> huge challenges remain we all know that. there is good news in afghanistan. life expect si has rich by 20 years. health care access increased dramatically. the number of children in schools rose from some 900,000 who were just boys to 8 million now, with 40% of them girls. >> the question on everyone's mind is how much longer u.s. forces wou

roslind jordan reports. >> when afghan president ashraf ghani meets with u.s. officials on monday, his country's security will be top of mind. he want president obama to delay his plans to deploy troops 2015. >> i'm particularly concerned about the summer 2015. the afghans, this is a first fighting season completely on their own. >> ghani is trying to negotiate peace talks with al-qaeda, and he's also very worried that isil is trying to move in. >> we believe that that it represents rebranding of the taliban. we're taking this threat with its dangerous rhetoric seriously. >> right now forces are in afghanistan to train and support the afghan military. president obama had planned to cut that number to 5600 by the end of this year and withdraw the rest by 2015 leaving behind a mall number of troops to protect the u.s. embassy. the fear is that the afghan military will crumble, something that was acknowledged on a recent trip. >> president obama is considering a number of options to reinforce our support for president ghani's strategy. >> some analysts say that th

but ashraf ghani convinced them that they could use the help through the end of this year. what will happen in 2016 still remains to be seen. but in the face of what president ghani expects to be a very difficult fighting season, he said his forces could get all the help they can get. >> nigeria will close its sea borders from midnight wednesday to midnight sunday. it will allow for peaceful elections. nigerians have been praising for possible sectarian violence during the polls this weekend. president good goodluck jonathan will face stiff opposition, we go to the city of jofs. >> some dance on the streets of jos,. behind every step here there is a serious message. the rejection of violence this weekend. >> this is done peacefully. no killing of anybody. >> this city known for ethnic and sectarian violence. >> jos is made up of different ethnic groups. deadly clashes have erupted here since 2001. the conflicts rooted in disputes over access to land, power and jobs almost always take a religious turn. yet the city was once known for its peaceful coexistence between muslims

this is the first time the death sentence has been carried out since ashraf ghani became president. the president's focus will be western afghanistan from where nicole johnston sent this report. >> it's a quiet trip around the block. he is with his boys, and an armed body guard. this is how well-off families get around these days. three years ago, one boy was kidnapped when he was six years old. his father now carries a gun and can't stop worrying about his family's safety. the boys have been on a school bus when three men shot the tires and dragged him out of his brothered arms and off the bus. they demanded $300,000. the family didn't ever that much. the kidnappers dropped the ransom to $50,000. he was freed after 86 days. >> before he was kidnapped, he was naughty fast and bright. after, he became withdrawn. if the body guard isn't with him all the time, he becomes frightened. he tells me they'll take him again. >> the taliban is active in the countryside but not the town. here the problem is organized really gangs. >> one reason he is a target is because it's full of businessman

afghan president ashraf ghani got what he came for. >> we'll maintain the posture of 9800 troops through the end of this year. >> president obama planned to cut the them in half. instead, he is delaying the timetable for withdrawal of american troops. >> given the blood and treasure the united states expended ashraf ghani said it was the right decision. >> the institutional gains achieved through advice and assistance is what will guarantee the investment of the last 14 years pay off in terms of gains that would insure. >> u.s. forces would continue to lead counterterrorism operations. the announcement coming after two leaders met in the oval office and after a sombre morning visit, where ghani laid a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier, it's designed in relation to a new era in relations, and boost confidence. >> four years ago there were 100,000 american troops in afghanistan. now the number is 10,000. even as we ask for that number to stay constant ghani says that his country is defying the pessimist. >> i'm pleased to say that the departure of the international troops it not br

. >> when ashraf ghani leaves on wednesday, his position will be top of mind. top u.s. general in afghanistan is inclined to do so. >> i'm particularly concerned about the summer of 2015, the afghans, this is the very first fighting season completely on their own. >> ghani is trying the relaunch peace talks with the taliban. he is very worried that i.s.i.l. might be trying to move in. >> we believe that the nascent presence of of i.s.i.l taking this rhetoric seriously. >> reporter: right now about 9800 u.s. services are in afghanistan to train military. president obama had planned to cut that number to 5600, which the end of this year, leaving behind a small number of troops to protect the u.s. embassy. the hope is fear is that the afghan military will crumble. >> president obama is consideration a number of scenarios, including possible changes to our draw down for u.s. troops. >> some say the obama administration has to think long term and can't ignore the need to improve afghanistan's economy. >> at any point you could see a security collapse but if the economy kind

we do anticipate that congress will be receptive to ashraf ghani not only for the reasons we outlined but also because he has vowed to take the fight to the taliban, and the other elements within afghanistan that would seek to topple that government in kabul, dell. >> as we see them getting ready for the entrance of the afghan president, the fact that the vice president of the united states is on the podium as well as the speaker of the house, heralds a different reception than what we saw for the prime minister of israel a month ago. >> well notably, joe biden assumes that ceremony position in joint sessions of congress such as the state of the union, a familiar scene behind the speaker -- or the individual who is addressing the chamber, in this case of course ashraf ghani. a scene we did not see three weeks ago when benjamin netenyahu was here to make his speech to the congress against the iranian nuclear deal. >> also joining us this morning is a senior national security fellow at the new american foundation. thanks for being with us. the president saying more than 9,000 u.s. troop

president ashraf ghani: president ashraf ghani: president obama and i would express deep sympathies for german and french families could . both of these countries took part in our coalition. i would like to make this opportunity to pay tribute to those sacrifices and take the opportunity to pay tribute to the 2250 american men and women . more than 22,000 american soldiers have been wounded in action. civilians, contractors. you stood shoulder to shoulder with us, and i would like to say thank you. i would also like the thank the american taxpayer for his and her hard-earned dollars. yesterday, i saw a young girl. her father came out of retirement to serve again in afghanistan. she is sending a care package of relief to her father, and i want to thank her and the fathers of all other american children who are making sure that their parents are helping us and standing next to us. the sisters are dreaming of achievement that will have a career path, and hopefully one day we will see an afghan woman president. it should not be too far. it should be soon. we have four women in the cabinet.

and what ashraf ghani wanted him to do is delay that plan. half of that number were to be there this year, 5,000 of them. and ghani wanted to delay it, to keep the 5,000 there a little bit longer to train equip and involve counter terrorism against taliban and other elements in afghanistan to stabilize that government. the president agreed in a joint press conference in the east room of the white house but he also insisted that the original plan that would have all u.s. troops removed from afghanistan by the beginning of 2017 was going to stay in place. a little bit more of what the president had to say. >> afghanistan is still a dangerous place, and the way it's going to become less dangerous is by afghan security forces and afghan policing capable of keeping law and order and security in the country. and that is not going to happen if foreign forces are continually ride upon. >> now the president says afghanistan is still a dangerous place, and that's something that the critics have seized upon, because they consider the withdrawal date to

the chair appoints as the committee on the part of the house to escort his excellency ashraf ghani into the chamber the gentleman from california mr. mccarthy, the gentleman from louisiana, mr. scalise, the gentlewoman from washington state, mrs. mcmorris rodgers, the gentleman from oregon mr. walden, the gentleman from indiana, mr. messer, the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx, the gentleman from kentucky, mr. rogers, the gentleman from california, mr. royce, the gentleman from texas, mr. thornberry, the gentleman from california, mr. nunez, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. frelinghuysen, the gentlelady from texas, ms. granger the gentleman from california -- the gentlewoman from california, ms. pelosi, the gentleman from maryland, mr. hoyer, the gentleman from california, mr. becerra, the gentleman from new york, mr. crowley, the gentlewoman from connecticut, ms. delauro, the jeement maryland ms. edwards the gentleman from new york, mr. engel the gentlewoman from california ms. eshoo the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, the gentlewoman from california, miss susan dav

the president ashraf ghani wants the country to avoid that violence. david ari ofta has more. >> reporter: nearly 14 years ago u.s. special forces descended on afghanistan. the mission - oust the taliban regime harbouring al qaeda leadership special for the september 11th attacks. the taliban reorganised across the border. the u.s. refocused on a second war in iran. in the years since, the prospects of a free afghanistan have been. along with the provinces of an equitable future. last week an angry mob in kabul vouched and attacked a 27-year-old woman. her crime burning the koran, allegedly. her body was burnt and dumped here. her father said she was a school teacher and is convinced she'd never burn pages from the holy book. the allegation was enough for the mob to come in and cameras recording men stomping and beating her. the plight of afghan women has often been captured by the lense. this image of this afghan girl was published. an icon of women suffering. in 2010 this image was splashed across the cover. she had her knows and ears cut off by a ta

ashraf ghani will meet to discuss security and economic development and u.s. troop levels. under 10,000 remain there. president obama will decide whether to continue plans to withdraw more troops. president ashraf ghani acknowledged the challenge. >> it's a very complicated issue that we don't want to get into. we will explain the condition, what we are doing, how we are bringing those efficiencies and then we need to let the internal process take over and arrive at decisions. but our need the regions, the global needs and the security of the united states. >> ashraf ghani will meet with secretary of state john kerry on monday, and president obama later next week. we'll have indepth coverage of the issues surrounding the visit on "the week ahead". tomorrow 8:30 eastern, 5:30 pacific >>> a new york city neighbourhood is mourning after seven siblings die in a house fire. plus... >> a central valley down in water crisis is getting help from the state. i'm jennifer london in sacramento here to find out if it will bring the relief they need, and what took so long >>> next hour -

and there are domestic problems here for ashraf ghani. he's sharing the government with a man he fought an election against and they have yet to appoint a defense minister. severe hurdles here, wolf. >> what's been the reaction there in afghanistan to president obama's decision to keep all the u.s. troops 9,800 u.s. troops there through the end of this year? start withdrawing them next year and have them all out? he says the complete withdrawal will occur by the end of 2016 early 2017 the latest he's got an end date when all u.s. troops will be out of afghanistan. what's the reaction? >> reporter: well certainly it's the afghan government that wanted to see a slower drawdown. ordinary afghans, the american combat role has more or less ended here. you won't be seeing the remaining troops out in the streets if you're afghan. that helps allay the white house of being accused of cutting and running. at the same time too, they're also keeping that key tenet barack obama had in his foreign policy as the president who ends the wars in afghanista

also ahead this tuesday: we talk with afghanistan's president ashraf ghani, as he appeals to president obama for additional u.s. troops, money%3 and assistance, to counter a continuing taliban threat. >> woodruff: plus... >> bam! this letter from the state of california saying you owe us $54,000. i was like "what?!" >> woodruff: the hidden costs of medicaid. why california waits to mail &q!ealth care bills for recipients until after they die. >> ifill: and... >> the changing light in san francisco is a sea light, an island light, and the light of fog blanketing the hills. >> ifill: a poet's ode to a san francisco that once was. activist, author and publisher lawrence ferlinghetti laments the city's latest boom. >> a new brand of dot com millionaires and general silicon valley money have moved into san francisco with bags full of cash and no manners. >> woodruff: those are some of the stories we're covering on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> it doesn't matter what kind of weather. it doesn't matter what time of day or night. when mo

as soon as ashraf ghani takes over, he signs the status of forces agreement, ghani comes here today, there was a meeting at camp david yesterday with u.s. officials, paid his respects at arlington national cemetery and will address congress, all of these things, you know, really putting on a good face, thanking the american taxpayer for this and the ability to work out a security agreement laid out today, about 10,000 troops remaining til the end of this year and with the goal by the end of 2016, the end of president obama's term, to have only a security force there to secure the u.s. embassy compound for about a thousand troops there. of course, republicans are already pushing back on that. you've heard from senators lindsey graham and john mccabe today -- mccain saying any type of timeline here, and other republicans have also criticized the president for that. cheryl: yeah, i saw those this morning. komam, it seems to me going down to less than 10,000 troops, still the threat of isis has been a very recent threat. can we be so sure that getting down to a thousand troops by the end

afghan president ashraf ghani said taking on interesting gangs is a top priority. they are a growing problem in herat. from where nicole johnson sent this report. >> reporter: it's a quiet trip around the block. this man and his boys. app armed body guard. this is how well-off families in herat get around these days. three years ago the youngest was kid named. -- kidnapped. his father carries a gun and can't stop worrying about their safety. the boys had been on a school bus. three men shot the tyres and dragged the boy out of his brother's arms and off the bus, demanding 300,000. the family didn't have that much, so the kidnappers dropped the ransom to 50,000. he was freed after 86 days. before he was kidnapped, he was naughty fast and bright. after he was withdrawn, if the body guard is not with him all the time he is frightened. he tells me they'll take us again. >> herat is a prosperous city. the taliban is active in the countryside, not the town. here the problem is organised criminal gangs. one. main reasons this is a target for criminal gangs is it's full of

afghanistan's new president ashraf ghani says taking on criminal gangs is a top priority, and among the president's focuses is the west of the country from where we report: >> it's a quiet trip around the block. he is with his boys, and an armed body guard. this is how well off families in herat get around these days. his 6-year-old was kidnapped. his father carries a gun and can't stop worrying about his family's safety. the boys have been on a school bus, when three men shot the tires and dragged the boy out of his brother's arms and off the bus. they demanded $300,000. the family didn't have that much so the kidnappers dropped the ransom to $50,000. he was freed after 86 days. >> before he was kidnapped, he was naughty, fast and bright. after, he became withdrawn. if the body guard isn't with him all the time web gets frightened. he tells me, they'll take us again. >> herat is a prosperous city. the taliban is active in the countryside, but not the town. here the problem is organized criminal gangs. >> one of the main reasons herat has become a target for criminal gangs is because it

this year president ashraf ghani fired the herat chief of police and 15 distribute chiefs in a mass sacking. saying they had failed to establish security. >> translation: the new police chief says they need to build trust with the community, to get more information about criminal gangs. >> translation: the terrorist groups kidnappers and taliban are not as strong as afghan security forces. they are small groups operating in a gorilla way. if the community operates, the criminals are watching. >> reporter: he didn't think he'd see his family again. he said that they beat him, showed him guns to scare him. "they tied me up and moved me three times." the family still receives threatening phone calls from men they believe are the kidnappers. d the boy is home, he's far from being safe. time for the weather, and rob is here. unusual rain in india. >> it's a time for cyclones in bengal, but unusual for rain. we look at the satellite picture. giving you an overnight picture where it was raining in mumbai this time yesterday after noon. the rain moved on it's further north. we were left with 30mm t

guest: ashraf ghani is very worried. though he has been a breath of fresh air, the fact of the matter is he is worried the united states will pull the carpet on -- carpet out from underneath him. the money is drying up. when i was in afghanistan, people were concerned that no matter how sincere ashraf ghani could be people would look at international aid as a reason to embezzle money quicker. likewise, if you have international agencies pullout, and this is where ashraf ghani is truly worried, the only other jobs people can go to is the illegal economy, the narcotics trade. that is ceballos is with terrorism can't -- ceballos is with terrorism, and ultimately, ashraf ghani can worry about the spread of the islamic state there. people can say what does the islamic state have to do with afghanistan? the reality is what did al qaeda have to do with afghanistan? this is a major concern. i spent time with the taliban in 2000, and the biggest difference between the taliban and the islamic state is the taliban was desperate for

. >> reporter: afghanistan's new president ashraf ghani will tell congress today why he wants u.s. troops to stay. >> we are going to have a tough year. we probably will have several tough years. >> reporter: there's already trouble. new today, word that a u.s. drone strike killed 11 taliban militants near the border with pakistan. more extremists are expected to rise up this spring. president obama has agreed to leave nearly 10,000 troops there this year but stick to the full pullout by the end of 2016. >> we want to make sure we're doing everything we can to help afghan security forces succeed so we don't have to go back. >> reporter: there's also concern isis could move into afghanistan. >> groups like isis fill the nooks and crannies and black spaces people don't think about in times of high anxiety. >> reporter: today's speech is similar to israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu's visit three weeks ago. now netanyahu is denying allegations his country spied on nuclear talks between the u.s. and iran and fed that information to republicans in congress. but those republicans

trish: you have just been watching president obama speaking with afghan president ashraf ghani at the white house. president obama says that the drawdown remains the same for 2016 and the transition out of a combat role in afghanistan has not changed. for more reaction, i want to bring in phil mattingly. president ghani was there looking for flexibility when you are talking about a timeline for u.s. troop withdrawal. did he get what he wanted? phil: he got exactly what he wanted. you heard president obama say this over and over again. it is very dangerous still on the ground in afghanistan. there is a very intense spring fighting season coming with the talib zanna there is also best the taliban. there is also a very real threat of recruitment by the islamic state. there is a very implicit view that what happened in iraq with the decision to pull out u.s. troops in total was, if not a mistake, something they wish they had not done entirely. what you are seeing now is more stability on the u.s. side to the numbers were supposed to began to 5500 by the end of this year. it will stay at 9