01 May 2003
Rumsfeld: Afghanistan Entering Period of Stability, Reconstruction
(In Baghdad, tells Iraqi people coalition wants to help, then leave)
(800)
By Jacquelyn S. Porth
Washington File Security Affairs Writer
Washington -- After meeting May 1 with his key military advisors in
Kabul and with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld said there has been a shift "from major combat activity to a
period of ... stabilization and reconstruction" in Afghanistan
Most of Afghanistan is now secure, the secretary said, although he
indicated "there are still pockets of resistance in certain parts of
the country." The stable security environment is engendering
confidence among Afghan exiles, he said, who are now "voting with
their feet" and returning home from around the world. "That's a good
thing," he said, and Karzai emphasized that those who are returning
are doing so "in large numbers."
Rumsfeld also talked about the Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs)
that he said "have been very well-received in the three locations
where they've started." He described the PRTs as country teams that
will contribute to important sectors such as security, transportation
and medicine. "We're hopeful that as we're able to attract other
countries to participate," he said, "that we'll find additional PRTs
moving out and contributing to an improved circumstance for the Afghan
people."
During a brief media availability with Karzai, Rumsfeld thanked the
Afghan president for his leadership and cooperation in the global war
on terrorism. Questioned about what some perceive as a deteriorating
security situation outside the capital environs, the secretary said,
"We'll expect that there'll be flare-ups from time to time, and as
they occur, they'll be dealt with." He made reference to the ebb and
flow of the security situation in some locales, adding, "we won't
expect that things will be perfectly level."
Rumsfeld also pointed out that the United States will still be working
with the Afghan government and its new National Army to ensure that
where resistance is found to Karzai's government or coalition forces
it "will be dealt with promptly and efficiently."
Asked to compare the security situations in Afghanistan and Iraq,
Rumsfeld described the difference between the two as "notable." The
size of coalition ground forces in Afghanistan, he said, is
"relatively modest." A security problem there, he said, is dealing
with the country's "porous borders."
In Iraq, the secretary said, coalition forces were acting against an
organized army "as opposed to a terrorist situation." With sizable
numbers of coalition ground forces in Iraq, Rumsfeld said, "We are
hopeful -- with our coalition partners -- (to) begin the process
relatively soon of shifting our weight somewhat (from security
functions to stabilization)." The security situation across Iraq will
not be uniform, he added, varying from province to province.
Rumsfeld's comments came as U.S. forces faced small arms fire in
different incidents in Baghdad and the town of Fallujah. The existing
military rules of engagement for U.S. forces allow them to return fire
in self-defense.
Rumsfeld's trip to Afghanistan follows his brief visit to Iraq April
30. He pre-recorded a message to the Iraqi people for broadcast May 1
over Iraqi radio emphasizing that the military coalition "has no
intention of owning or running Iraq." Coalition action had only one
purpose, he said: "to remove a regime that oppressed your people and
threatened ours."
Now the goal is to restore stability and security so that an interim,
freely chosen government can be formed, Rumsfeld said. "The coalition
will stay as long as necessary to help you do that," he added, "and
not one day longer." The secretary's message was to be re-broadcast on
Iraqi television.
Rumsfeld visited U.S. and British soldiers in Basra and Baghdad just
six weeks after the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq. While
in the Iraqi capital to witness liberation first hand, he visited an
electrical power facility where Iraqis and American military engineers
are working together to repair much needed infrastructure.
In interview earlier in the week with a Middle East Broadcasting
correspondent, Rumsfeld rejected the assertion made by some that the
United States intends to establish permanent military bases in Iraq.
"We're not," he said when asked about establishing future bases.
The use of Iraqi air bases and port facilities by coalition forces and
other countries, Rumsfeld said, is strictly for the humanitarian
purpose of bringing in food, water and medicine. He also pointed out
that with the removal of the former Iraqi regime, "the United States
needs fewer bases...fewer people, not more."
Meanwhile, the U.S Central Command (CENTCOM) reported April 30 that
the former governor of Basra surrendered. Walid Hamid Tawfiq
al-Tikriti was on CENTCOM's list of top 55 Most Wanted members of the
Saddam Hussein regime.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
