US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta on Wednesday declared that success in Afghanistan could not be achieved without cooperation from Pakistan, warning that Pakistanis “better damn well” work toward securing their country.
“Ultimately, to win in Afghanistan, we have to win in Pakistan as well,” Panetta said as he visited US troops in Paktika province of Afghanistan, according to the American Forces Press Service. “If we are going to secure [Afghanistan], the Pakistanis better damn well secure their country, as well.” Thanking the American troops for their hard work in the region, the US defence secretary maintained that their sacrifice had created real results. “For all the sacrifice that you are doing, the reality is that it is paying off and that we are moving in the right direction, and we are winning this very tough conflict here in Afghanistan. And it is mainly due to you, to all of you,” he said, according to AFPS. Still, there were many obstacles in Afghanistan’s path forward, Panetta said. “Are there challenges out there? You are damned right there are challenges. Are we going to be able to take on those challenges? You are damned right we are,” he said. But Panetta expressed confidence that Afghanistan would eventually be a nation of self-governance, free of safe havens for the Taliban. “And that is because of what you are doing right here, right now,” he said.
Afghanistan success lies in Islamabad, says Panetta
