Marines to be among first to leave Afghanistan

WASHINGTON - The second-ranking U.S. commander in Afghanistan is providing new details on the planned pullout of U.S. troops this year.

Army Lt. Gen. David Rodriguez told reporters at the Pentagon on Wednesday that by the end of this summer the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment — based in the southern province of Helmand — will leave and not be replaced.

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That unit has between 1,000 and 1,200 Marines.

Rodriguez did not give a complete rundown of the planned withdrawal. He said some aspects of it will not be decided until later this year.

President Barack Obama announced last month that by the end of this year 10,000 U.S. troops will come home. Another 23,000 will leave in 2012. The president said at the time: "We will not try to make Afghanistan a perfect place. We will not police its streets or patrol its mountains indefinitely. That is the responsibility of the Afghan government."

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In a recent CBS/New York Times poll, four out of 5 Americans approved the president's plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan.