”It is absolutely critical that the safe havens in Pakistan get shut down. We cannot succeed in Afghanistan without that,” he said.
However, in an unusually upbeat assessment on the war, Mullen declared that the enemy in Afghanistan was losing.
The remark comes as the US faces a critical six-month period in Afghanistan.
US President Barack Obama last year ordered a build-up of troops with the promise that they would start leaving the country in July. Many of Obama’s Democratic supporters in Congress say they want to see significant progress by then.
But senior military officials, including Mullen, say they still aren’t sure how many troops can leave this summer and from what areas they would be pulled. They caution that significant drawdowns might not happen until closer to 2014, when Afghan President Hamid Karzai has promised to take over security of the country.
Mullen predicted on Wednesday that there would be ”plenty of forces left” come July and he expects violence to rise as US and Afghan forces continue to confront Taliban strongholds.
But, he added, local towns are beginning to reject Taliban fighters and that surprising progress is being seen in tough areas like southern Kandahar province.
”I have every confidence that (the enemy) will continue to lose, so long as coalition and Afghan forces increase their presence and their pressure on his operations and improve their own capacity,” he told reporters at the Foreign Press Center.
Last month, the Obama administration completed a strategy review that concluded Taliban momentum had been halted in many parts of Afghanistan and that al Qaeda leaders thought to be plotting further terrorist attacks on the US from Pakistan sanctuaries have suffered grievous losses.
But the review also made clear that further progress won’t come easily. And it indicates that ultimate success depends heavily on factors beyond Obama’s control, such as Pakistan’s effectiveness in eliminating al Qaeda and Taliban havens on its side of the border.
When asked whether he was painting too rosy a picture of the war, Mullen said that was not his intention.
”I’m encouraged, but I do not want to understate in any way, shape or form the difficulty of the task,” he said. ”It clearly continues to be severe.”
Pakistan Related News;
| AP DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan – Pakistani intelligence officials say mortars allegedly fired from Afghanistan have killed eight people in northwestern ...
Islamabad, Jan 13 (PTI) Pakistan today said it wouldnot accept any foreign pressure for launching a militaryoperation against militants in North Waziristan ...
Hindustan Times - 6 hours ago
PTI The US wants Pakistan to take speedy action against al-Qaeda and Taliban elements holed up in North Waziristan tribal region near the Afghan border, ...
Sify - 7 hours ago
Pakistan is the "epicenter of terrorism in the world" right now, and the coalition forces fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan cannot win the war without ...
Oneindia - 10 hours ago
Washington, Jan 13: A top US military official has called Pakistan the 'epicentre' of global terrorism and emphasised that America's success in Afghanistan ...
Indian Express - 11 hours ago
The level of violence in Afghanistan would increase this year with more bloodshed and a greater number of casualties, a top US military official has said. ...
BBC News - 12 hours ago
The US military's most senior officer has warned there will be an increase in bloodshed in Afghanistan this year. Adm Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint ...
Economic Times - 13 hours ago
WASHINGTON: Calling Pakistan as the "epicentre" of global terrorism, a top US military official has said that America can't succeed in Afghanistan unless ...
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen told reporters on Wednesday that local towns are beginning to reject Taliban ...
Economic Times - 13 hours ago
WASHINGTON: Calling Pakistan as the "epicentre" of global terrorism, a top US military official has said that America can't succeed in Afghanistan unless ...
Sify - 7 hours ago
The top US military official has time and again warned that Pakistan's tribal region bordering Afghanistan has become the epicentre of terrorism in the ...
Oneindia - 10 hours ago
Washington, Jan 13: A top US military official has called Pakistan the 'epicentre' of global terrorism and emphasised that America's success in Afghanistan ...
DAWN.com - 10 hours ago
Photo by AP WASHINGTON: US chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, on Wednesday calledPakistan the ”epicentre” for global terrorism and ...
Outlook - 9 hours ago
Terming Pakistan as the "epicentre" for global terrorism, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff said that global focus had to be on ...
No comments:
Post a Comment