Obama tells Karzai U.S. will plan for 2014 withdrawal from Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama spoke by telephone with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday regarding a range of topics, including the not-yet-signed Bilateral Security Agreement.

Obama told Karzai that due to the ongoing delays, it seemed unlikely the Afghan president was going to sign the BSA. Without a signed BSA, "the United States is moving forward with additional contingency planning" that includes ensuring the Pentagon can effect a full military withdrawal by the end of 2014.

However, if Karzai goes forward with signing the BSA, Obama said the U.S. would plan for "a limited post-2014 mission focused on training, advising, and assisting Afghan forces."

"However, the longer we go without a BSA, the more challenging it will be to plan and execute any U.S. mission. Furthermore, the longer we go without a BSA, the more likely it will be that any post-2014 U.S. mission will be smaller in scale and ambition."

According to the White House, the two leaders also discussed Afghanistan's upcoming elections and Afghan-led peace and reconciliation efforts.

[White House]