Errr, does her boss know this?

BERLIN: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday backed away from a US timeline to start pulling troops from Afghanistan in July, warning “political expediency” would benefit the Taliban.

Speaking at a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Berlin, Clinton also warned of a “violent spring fighting season” in Afghanistan as the Taliban try to exert themselves in areas where Afghan forces are due to assume control.

“We have to steel ourselves and our publics for the possibility that the Taliban will resort to the most destructive and sensational attacks we have seen,” she said.

Clinton hailed the “heroic sacrifices” by nations in the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, and insisted there has been progress in fighting the insurgents.

“We need to ensure that these sacrifices are not overtaken by political expediency and short-term thinking,” Clinton told the NATO meeting in Berlin.

“We need to worry less about how fast we can leave and more about how we can help the Afghan people build on the gains of the past 15 months,” she said.