JOIN US
Obama was stuck at the Bagram air base and unable to move to Kabul and meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai due to bad weather.
When Obama landed at Bagram late Friday night local Afghan time, ceiling (cloud cover) was less than 1000ft and winds were blowing at 45mph and above with less than two miles visibility.
The two leaders are now expected to talk over a video conference. The president’s primary focus of the trip is to meet with and thank US troops.
The Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes told reporters travelling with the President that the trip planning began a month ago and the principle reason for going was to spend time with US troops during the holiday season, to thank them and to wish them happy holidays.
Rhodes said this is a “particularly tough time of the year” for men and women in the military and their families.
He said the president wanted to “underscore” the sacrifice of service members and their families.
The US president is likely to take stock of a nine-year-old American-led war that he hopes to begin winding down next year.
Rhodes said there is “no major new piece” of news that Obama is bringing to the meeting with Karzai. The President’s trip to Afghanistan did not come up in their meeting in Lisbon, he said.