<i>Afghan campaign will be tough: Petraeus</i>
WITH US forces entering the second week of a 12 to 18-month campaign in Afghanistan, the general in charge of US forces in the region acknowledged yesterday that the way ahead will be tough. "I have repeatedly said that these types of efforts are hard, and they're hard all the time," Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander of US Central Command, said on NBC's "Meet the Press." Likening operations in Afghanistan to the surge in Iraq, the general pointed out that when US forces go on the offensive to take away Taliban safe havens, they will see definite resistance. Petraeus said the past year has been spent putting things in place for a "comprehensive civil military campaign," putting in the best leaders, helping to develop concepts, giving counterinsurgency guidance and starting to filter an additional 30,000 forces into the country. Early results have included taking down high-value targets, such as Taliban shadow governors, Petraeus said. "We are there for a very, very important reason and we can't forget that," Petraeus emphasized. "We are in Afghanistan to ensure that it cannot once again be a sanctuary for the kind of attacks that were carried out on 9/11, which were planned initially in Kandahar, first training done in eastern Afghanistan before the attackers moved to Hamburg and then on to US flight schools." When asked if al-Qaida still poses a threat to the United States, Petraeus pointed out that the terrorist organization is a "flexible, adaptable" enemy whose threat, although diminished within the 20 countries making up the Central Command area, is one that requires constant vigilance. Source: www.defencetalk.com
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