Sen. John McCain on Monday night released a statement praising President Donald Trump's vision for Afghanistan, saying it's a "big step in the right direction."
The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee had been impatient and critical of the administration recently for its lack of a strategy in the war-torn country.
But McCain liked what he heard from the president's primetime speech.
"I commend President Trump for taking a big step in the right direction with the new strategy for Afghanistan," the Arizona Republican wrote.
"The unfortunate truth is that this strategy is long overdue, and in the interim, the Taliban have made dangerous inroads. Nevertheless, I believe the President is now moving us well beyond the prior administration's failed strategy of merely postponing defeat," McCain wrote.
"It is especially important that the newly announced strategy gives no timeline for withdrawal, rather ensures that any decision to reduce our commitment in the future will be based on conditions on the ground," McCain wrote.
Trump reversed course on Afghanistan, saying in his speech that withdrawing U.S. forces from Afghanistan would create a vacuum that would be filled by terrorists.
The president denounced "arbitrary timetables" and wouldn't commit to sending more troops, but he's expected to approve a Pentagon recommendation of sending an additional 4,000 troops.
"For the last 16 years we have faltered," McCain said in his statement.
"Now we must keep up the right level of effort, in the right places, with the right authorities and resources, together with our allies and partners, and see this conflict through to success," McCain wrote.
"To do this, the President must conduct himself as a wartime commander in chief. He must speak regularly to the American people, and to those waging this war on their behalf, about why we are fighting, why the additional sacrifices are worth it, and how we will succeed," McCain wrote.