New US defense chief says tough choices await him on war budget

Leon Panetta was sworn in as US defense secretary today promising to keep the military strong while making tough choices on defense spending cuts.

Panetta, who as CIA director helped oversee the operation that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden two months ago, arrives at the Pentagon at a moment of transition in the US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and intense debate over the American role in Libya.

But the budget battle may be as big a challenge as the wars he will inherit. President Barack Obama has called on the Defense Department to come up with $400 billion in reductions over 12 years as he struggles to reduce the country's $1.4 trillion deficit and $14 trillion debt.

Panetta, in a message to US forces around the world, said that would "require us all to be disciplined in how we manage taxpayer resources."

"While tough budget choices will need to be made, I do not believe in the false choice between fiscal discipline and a strong national defense. We will all work together to achieve both," Panetta said.

The 73-year-old Panetta was greeted upon arrival at the Pentagon by Marine Lieutenant General John Kelly.

Kelly was the senior military assistant to outgoing Pentagon chief Robert Gates will continue in the powerful position under Panetta, who must oversee a faster-than-expected drawdown from Afghanistan announced by Obama last month.

About a third of the US forces in Afghanistan will be withdrawn by next summer, a faster timetable than US military commanders had recommended. "Welcome aboard, sir," Kelly said, shaking Panetta's hand as stepped out of his chauffeured vehicle.

Panetta has a full first day in office, including attending a 1:30 p.m. meeting with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and service chiefs in "The Tank," the ultra-secure Pentagon briefing room.

In a long career that included positions as White House chief of staff and budget director, Panetta was also an Army intelligence officer in the 1960s – a point he noted in his message to troops. He promised to keep the US military the strongest in the world, despite the fiscal pressures.