Militant sanctuaries pose biggest Afghanistan threat: Gates

USA, WASHINGTON Defense Secretary Robert Gates said his biggest concern in the war in Afghanistan is the threat posed by sanctuaries for Islamic militants near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. 

The threat is from “safe havens on the Pakistani side of the border, not just for al-Qaeda, but for the Taliban” and other groups “working together,” Gates said on a US news channel.  “After all, 20 years ago I was on the other side of that border as deputy director of the CIA, fighting the Soviets,” Gates said, referring to the Central Intelligence Agency. “And we had the safe haven in Pakistan, and let me tell you, it made a big difference.”  President Barack Obama in February ordered 17,000 more troops to Afghanistan to battle the Taliban and allied Islamic militant groups. Obama’s administration has increased criticism of President Hamid Karzai’s government as the White House prepares an overhaul of policies toward Afghanistan and Pakistan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in January that the Afghan government is “plagued by limited capacity and widespread corruption.”  Turning to Russia, Gates said it’s “not entirely clear” where its policy is headed.  “As I said in the last administration, for the first time in American history you had a secretary of state and secretary of defense both with doctorates in Russian history, and we didn’t have a clue what was going on,” said Gates, 65, referring to himself and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.