The Wire

Australian troops stationed in Afghanistan will start coming home as early as next year. When Julia Gillard announced the new withdrawal timeline in Canberra today, she also emphasised that Australia would continue to fund aid programs in the long term, and that some special forces would stay behind to provide support. But some analysts say the timing is not right, and are accusing the Prime Minister of caving in to pressure from voters at home, rather than waiting until Afghan troops are ready.

Some have argued that getting aid to the people on the ground could get increasingly difficult without a foreign security presence.