Barack Obama defends drones, pushes to shut Gitmo

US President Barack Obama defended the use of drones, declaring his country was at a "crossroads" in the fight against terrorism.

Zee Media Bureau

Washington: US President Barack Obama on Thursday defended the use of drones, declaring his country was at a "crossroads" in the fight against terrorism.

In an address at National Defense University in Washington, Obama set out clearer guidelines for the use of deadly drone strikes.

The US President also announced a renewed push to close the Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba, lifting a moratorium on prisoner transfers to Yemen.

"From our use of drones to the detention of terrorist suspects, the decisions we are making will define the type of nation and world that we leave to our children," he said.

"So America is at a crossroads. We must define the nature and scope of this struggle, or else it will define us."

"Neither I, nor any president, can promise the total defeat of terror," Obama said. "What we can do — what we must do — is dismantle networks that pose a direct danger, and make it less likely for new groups to gain a foothold, all while maintaining the freedoms and ideals that we defend."

The President, in his most expansive public discussion on drones, defended their targeted killings as both effective and legal. He acknowledged the civilian deaths that sometimes result — a consequence that has angered many of the countries where the US seeks to combat extremism — and said he grapples with that trade-off.

"For me, and those in my chain of command, these deaths will haunt us as long as we live," he said. Before any strike, he said, "there must be near-certainty that no civilians will be killed or injured — the highest standard we can set."

Ahead of the address, Obama signed new "presidential policy guidelines" aimed at illustrating more clearly to Congress and the public the standards the US applies before carrying out drone attacks. Officials said the guidelines include not using strikes when the targeted people can be captured, either by the US or a foreign government, relying on drones only when the target poses an "imminent" threat and establishing a preference for giving the military control of the drone program.

(With Agency inputs)

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