Obama weighs cost of Afghan war

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama is insisting that military options for the costly war in Afghanistan include the quickest possible exit strategy, officials said.

Obama, in deliberations on the war, is acutely aware of the soaring U.S. budget deficit, the weak economy and the costly health care plan he is trying to get passed, a senior administration official told The New York Times in a story published Sunday.

"The president focused a lot on ensuring that we were asking the difficult questions about getting to an end game here," said the official, who requested anonymity because of the confidential deliberations.

Adding 40,000 U.S. troops and expanding Afghan security forces, as proposed by Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the allied commander in Afghanistan, would cost $40 billion to $54 billion a year, The Times reported.

Even if fewer troops are sent, the cost of the war could erase the projected $26 billion expected to be saved next year from withdrawing troops from Iraq, officials said.