Republican lawmakers say Obama's withdrawal deadline has hurt war in Afghanistan

Washington, July 5 (ANI): Leading Republican lawmakers are voicing opposition to President Barack Obama's plan to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan by 2011.

According to CBS, Senator Lindsey Graham has said that the confusion and ambiguity over President Obama's July 2011 withdrawal target has hurt the war in Afghanistan.

"If you send a signal to your enemies you're going to leave at a certain date, they'll wait until that date and wait you out, if the Taliban ever come back and take over all or part of this country, we'll never know peace," Graham said.

Graham, who is a member of the Senate's Armed Services Committee, said that he supports transitioning control to the Afghans, but Obama's deadline strategy has not worked. We're not here as an occupier, but this confusion has hurt. It's emboldened our enemies. We need to get it right and get it clarified," he added.

CBS also stated Graham as saying that the decision was not fair to General David Howell Petraeus, the troops and civilian counterparts to be operating in Afghanistan with the belief that come July 2011, they were going to begin to withdraw no matter what.

McCain, a former Navy pilot and the ranking Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, too called the deadline 'indecipherable' and said it 'certainly sounds an uncertain trumpet' to both allies and foes. (ANI)