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Pentagon repositioning for decades-long war on terror
Washington, Oct 25: Given the chance to talk to the Defence Secretary, one solider asked what was on the minds of many: when will the worldwide fight against terrorism be over?
Washington, Oct 25: Given the chance to talk to
the Defence Secretary, one solider asked what was on the minds
of many: when will the worldwide fight against terrorism be
over?
Washington, Oct 25: Given the chance to talk to
the Defence Secretary, one solider asked what was on the minds
of many: when will the worldwide fight against terrorism be
over?
“I mean, should I get my three-year-old ready for air
assault school?'' the soldier asked Defence Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld during an Iraq tour last month.
“I wish I could give you a date, but I can't,'' Rumsfeld said. That would be like estimating when a town will no longer need firefighters or police, he told the soldier.
Privately, administration officials have said for months that they see the anti-terrorism fight as a decades-long struggle similar to the cold war that dominated the second half of the 20th century. A private memo from Rumsfeld to his top aides brought the issue once again to the public's eye last week.
“It is pretty clear that the coalition can win in Afghanistan and Iraq in one way or another, but it will be a long, hard slog,'' Rumsfeld wrote in the memo, which was leaked to the press.
Two years after the September 11 attacks, the Pentagon clearly is digging in for that long slog. In one of the most striking signs, the military is repositioning its forces to encircle areas of the world seen as possible hotbeds of terrorism.
Many of the changes were envisioned before the September 11 attacks. But the terrorism fight has added momentum and urgency. Rumsfeld's memo expressed doubt that those changes can be made quickly.
Bureau Report
“I wish I could give you a date, but I can't,'' Rumsfeld said. That would be like estimating when a town will no longer need firefighters or police, he told the soldier.
Privately, administration officials have said for months that they see the anti-terrorism fight as a decades-long struggle similar to the cold war that dominated the second half of the 20th century. A private memo from Rumsfeld to his top aides brought the issue once again to the public's eye last week.
“It is pretty clear that the coalition can win in Afghanistan and Iraq in one way or another, but it will be a long, hard slog,'' Rumsfeld wrote in the memo, which was leaked to the press.
Two years after the September 11 attacks, the Pentagon clearly is digging in for that long slog. In one of the most striking signs, the military is repositioning its forces to encircle areas of the world seen as possible hotbeds of terrorism.
Many of the changes were envisioned before the September 11 attacks. But the terrorism fight has added momentum and urgency. Rumsfeld's memo expressed doubt that those changes can be made quickly.
Bureau Report