WASHINGTON: The White House has assured Afghanistan that the United States and its allies would continue to invest in political and economic success of the Afghan people but did not respond to a request for extending US military presence in the country.

In an interview to a US television network on Sunday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani urged the US administration to consider re-examining its timetable for withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan.

But at a White House news briefing, Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the United States had a very clear strategy about the deployment of its troops in Afghanistan.

“After the end of the year, we are now in a situation where the combat mission in Afghanistan for US military personnel has ended,” he said. “The Afghans are now solely responsible for the security of their country.”

But he also noted that there would be an enduring US and Nato military presence in Afghanistan after 2014 as well. And this military will have two clear missions: countering terrorists and training and assisting Afghan security forces.