US Defence Secretary Robert Gates arrived on his final trip to Afghanistan as Pentagon chief on Saturday, acknowledging Americans have grown tired of war but warning that success was imperative because failure would be the most costly result.
Gates, who steps down as US defense secretary at the end of June, said in remarks en route to Afghanistan that continued military pressure on the Taliban could improve prospects for political reconciliation talks, but he also appeared to leave open the possibility of a shift in the US mission. “You can’t be oblivious to the growing war weariness at home and the diminishing support in the Congress,” he said.
“So I think these are all things that the president will have to weigh and those of us advising him will have to weigh.” But he said in his view it was important to achieve the war aims laid down by President Barack Obama, despite the high cost and flagging support.
“I think that once you’ve committed, that success of the mission should override everything else because the most costly thing of all would be to fail,” he said. “Now that does not preclude adjustments in the mission or in the strategy, but ultimately the objective has to be success in the mission that has been set forth by the president.”