In what can only be seen as a dramatic reversal in policy, President Barack Obama has decided to delay the withdrawal of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, keeping the current force of nearly 10,000 in place past the end of his presidency, when they will shrink to 5,500. When Obama ran for the presidency in 2008, he pledged to end U.S. involvement in two costly wars: Iraq and Afghanistan. But with the Taliban’s brief but bold takeover of Kunduz province and the ongoing threat posed by the Islamic State, the president was forced to reconsider his initial plan to finally put an end to America’s longest war. While some say it’s too little too late, others are praising him for acting against his strong belief that the United States must not march into what he calls “open-ended military conflicts.”