U.S. Urges NATO Allies Not to Rush Out of Afghanistan
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates urged NATO allies Thursday not to rush out of Afghanistan as he vowed that a U.S. troop drawdown next month would not mean a hasty exit for Washington.
Gates, who attended his final NATO meeting in Brussels before retiring at the end of the month, said the alliance was making "substantial military progress on the ground" and repeated that it was too early know the impact of Osama bin Laden's death on the war.
"I also reiterated my belief that these gains could be threatened if we do not proceed with the transition to Afghan security lead in a deliberate, organized and coordinated manner," he told a news conference.
"Even as the United States begins to draw down next month, I assured my fellow ministers that there will be no rush to the exits on our part -- and we expect the same from our allies," he said.
As U.S. President Barack Obama weighs the scope and pace of the drawdown, German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere voiced concerns about its potential impact on the transition if it is too deep.
"We are a little concerned that if it's too much then the strategy cannot be implemented as agreed. We hope for a moderate step by the American president," he told reporters.
The drawdown has been a source of disagreement within the Obama administration, with Gates sparring with White House aides pushing for a major reduction of the 100,000 U.S. troops, who are reinforced by 30,000 other foreign forces.
Gates shares the view of commanders that a troop surge in the nearly 10-year-old war has begun to show results and that a withdrawal should proceed at a careful pace.
Some White House officials believe that bin Laden's death last month and a ballooning budget deficit demand a steep reduction in the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.
Gates, however, reiterated that it was too soon to draw any conclusions about the effects of bin Laden's death on the Afghan mission.
The U.S.-led war in Afghanistan was triggered by the Taliban's failure to hand over bin Laden in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, but has become unpopular in Europe.
NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen vowed that the alliance would not abandon Afghanistan as it starts handing command of the battlefield to Afghan forces in weeks, with the aim of ending the foreign combat role in three years.
"There will be no rush for the exits. And that has been confirmed at today's meeting. On the contrary, all ISAF partners will stay committed and see this through," he said, referring to the International Security Assistance Force.
Rasmussen said that a "gradual change" could take place during the transition, from reducing the 40,000 extra troops deployed in 2009, to moving soldiers to different parts of the country or reassigning them to training Afghans.
The transition is due to begin in seven areas of Afghanistan in weeks but the exact date when it will start remains unclear.
The NATO ministers also heard from General David Petraeus, the commander of international forces in Afghanistan, who is due to give his recommendation to Obama within days.
Europeans are planning their own redeployments.
British Prime Minister David Cameron announced last month that London would pull out 450 troops by the end of 2011, defying defense chiefs who wanted a smaller reduction. Britain has 9,500 troops in Afghanistan, the most after the United States.
The Netherlands withdrew its combat troops last year and decided to send police trainers this year. Canada plans to switch to a training mission this year while Poland has said it wants to do the same in 2012.
Lawmakers in Germany, whose contingent of 5,000 troops is the third largest, agreed in January to extend the mission by 12 months but with a clause calling for them to begin coming home at the end of the year, if conditions permit.
Source: Agence France Presse
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