Gates Visits Volatile Southern Afghanistan
VOA News March 08, 2011
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates is visiting Afghanistan's volatile south Tuesday, a day after flying into the country and apologizing for last week's accidental civilian deaths in the country's east.
Gates met with troops Tuesday in Kandahar province, a crucial battleground seething with insurgent leaders. He also discussed security advancements in the region.
During a joint news conference with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kabul Monday, Gates said the United States is in good position to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan this July.
He noted there will be a continued U.S. presence in the country for years to come, but that the U.S. has "no interest in permanent bases." He said Mr. Karzai will soon announce the first areas where Afghan troops will take responsibility for security.
Gates on Monday also apologized for the accidental deaths of nine Afghan children in a coalition airstrike in eastern Kunar province last week, calling the incident a tragedy and a setback for relations with the Afghan people.
Karzai said he accepted Gates' apology but repeated his insistence that coalition forces bring civilian casualty figures to zero.
Ties between Afghanistan and NATO have been strained since the killing of the nine Afghan boys who were mistaken for insurgents while collecting firewood. The incident sent hundreds into the streets of the Afghan capital, Kabul, Sunday. Protesters shouted "Death to America."
Gates said more than 80 percent of the civilian casualties in the Afghan war are caused by insurgents. U.S. officials frequently note that the insurgents target civilians on purpose, while deaths caused by coalition forces are accidents that they work hard to avoid.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP
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