US lawmakers seek big Afghan withdrawal in July

© AFP Peter Parks

AFP

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Eighty-one US lawmakers, mostly Democratic allies of the White House, pressed President Barack Obama on Wednesday to make a "significant and sizeable" drawdown of US forces from Afghanistan in July.

"Let us be clear. The redeployment of a minimal number of US troops from Afghanistan in July will not meet the expectations of Congress or the American people," the group, all members of the US House of Representatives, said in a letter to Obama.

The lawmakers, just four of whom were Republicans, expressed support for Obama's plans to start withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan no later than July 2011 with an eye to transferring security to Afghan forces by 2014.