Gates gives Afghan war leadership a pep talk

[unhappycamper]

Gates gives Afghan war leadership a pep talk
By Kevin Baron, Stars and Stripes
Online edition, Thursday, December 10, 2009

KABUL, Afghanistan – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates held a last-minute, unannounced briefing with the top leadership of international coalition and Afghan security forces in a VIP waiting room at the Kabul International Airport on Thursday.

The secretary assured the hastily gathered delegation before he departed the country that the U.S. would remain committed to Afghanistan well beyond the July 2011 date the Obama administration has set to begin transferring security control and withdrawing American troops.

“While we hope and expect to begin transferring security responsibility by July of 2011, we will have a large number of forces here for some period beyond that,” he said, before leaving for Iraq and the second leg of his trip. “This is a relationship forged in blood.”

Lt. Gen. David Rodriguez, commander of the new ISAF Joint Command, had organized a trip to Kandahar for leaders from ISAF, the Afghan National Army, the Afghan National Police and other government officials “to discuss the game plan” there ahead of the arrival of more than 35,000 U.S. and international forces arriving beginning this month, according to Geoff Morrell, the secretary’s spokesman.

But the party was delayed by the same bad weather that forced the secretary to alter his own in-country travel plans this week.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=66584



unhappycamper comment: Perhaps someone should tell Gates who his boss is.

[Blue Owl]

1. Pep up the killing, Mr. Gates

War is good! Peace cannot be achieved without killing. No biggie if a few civilians get tossed in.

It's perfectly normal for the private no-bid KBR contractors to earn 3x more than our soldiers.

Speaking of no-bid contractors, where's Blackwater? We need an entire village mowed down by noon.

This stuff makes your old VP Dick Cheney happy. Real happy.

Carry on, men. Back home, the folks are shopping in safety from these cavemen.