Def. Sec. Gates--Pakistan Safe Havens Pivotal Re Afghanistan

[johnkarls]

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Meet the Press – March 1, 2009
Defense Secretary Gates Interview
Transcript Excerpt Re Afghanistan


EDITORIAL NOTE – Note well Sec Gates’ last two sentences in his first response re the Pakistan “safe havens” vis-à-vis Afghanistan = “AFTER ALL, 20 YEARS AGO I WAS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT BORDER AS DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF CIA FIGHTING THE SOVIETS, AND WE HAD THE SAFE HAVEN IN PAKISTAN. AND LET ME TELL YOU, IT MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE."


MR. GREGORY: I want to turn to Afghanistan and Pakistan. You have said that in fact the greatest military challenge now is Afghanistan. The president has said that he will commit 17,000 additional U.S. troops. This is how you described Afghanistan recently: "This is going to be a long slog," you said, "and frankly, my view is that we need to be very careful about the nature of the goals we set for ourselves in Afghanistan." That was in January. Back in December you said about Pakistan that it is on top of the list when it comes to problems and challenges that the U.S. faces. Now, most of the security risk is posed from that border area between Afghanistan and Pakistan where jihadists and the Taliban are resurgent. In that area, and as you look at the whole picture, what worries you most?

SEC'Y GATES: I think it's the safe havens on the Pakistani side of the border not just for al-Qaeda, but for the Taliban, for the Haqqani network, for Gulbaddin Hekmatyar and these other affiliated groups that are all working together. They're into--they're separate groups, but they're all working together. And, and I think as long as, as they have a safe haven to operate there, it's going to be a problem for us in Afghanistan. After all, 20 years ago I was on the other side of that border as deputy director of CIA fighting the Soviets, and we had the safe haven in Pakistan. And let me tell you, it made a big difference.

MR. GREGORY: Is it sustainable, this policy of covert operations targeting the Taliban and other jihadists through covert measures, at a time--and doing so, as I say, through covert measures at a time when, when the Pakistani leadership thinks it's destabilizing the country?

SEC'Y GATES: I'm not going to get into any intelligence operations. I will just say that I think that the key here is our being able to cooperate with and enable the Pakistanis to be able to deal with this problem on their own sovereign territory. I believe, based on my talks with the Pakistanis here in Washington this week, this past week, that, that they have--they clearly now understand that what's going on up there in that border area is as big a risk to the stability of Pakistan as it is a problem for us in Afghanistan.

MR. GREGORY: The, the overall consequence--the trouble and consequences of, of jihadists making significant gains in either Afghanistan or Pakistan is perhaps more acute in Pakistan given its nuclear potential. True?

SEC'Y GATES: Well, as long as we're in Afghanistan and as long as the Afghan government has the support of dozens and dozens of countries who are providing military support, civilian support in addition to us, we are providing a level of stability in Afghanistan that at least prevents it from being a safe haven...

MR. GREGORY: Mm-hmm.

SEC'Y GATES: ...from which plots against the United States and the Europeans and others can be, can be put together. So that border area, particularly on the Pakistani side, is, is the most worrisome

MR. GREGORY: Let me ask you specifically about Afghanistan. Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wrote in The Washington Post Thursday about what the U.S. strategy has been up until now: "To create," he says, "a, a central government, help it extend its authority over the entire country and, in the process, bring about a modern bureaucratic and democratic society. That strategy cannot succeed in Afghanistan." How does the strategy have to change in Afghanistan?

SEC'Y GATES: I--first of all, we're reviewing exactly that in the administration right now. That's what the Pakistanis and the Afghans were in town for was to participate in that review. We're talking to the Europeans, to our allies, we're bringing in an awful lot of people to get different points of view as we go through this, this review of what our strategy ought to be. And I often get asked, well, how long will those 17,000 be there? Will more go in? All that depends on the outcome of, of this strategy review that I hope will be done in a few weeks.