Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Pentagon chief: 'West and allies are winning in Afghanistan'

The United States and its allies are winning in Afghanistan, the US defense chief said, despite spreading violence, a resilient insurgency and uncertain prospects for a peace deal the West had hoped might end a decade of war.

"I really think that for all the sacrifice that you're doing, the reality is that it's paying off," Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told US soldiers at Forward Operating Base Sharana, an outpost in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province.

"We're moving in the right direction and we're winning this very tough conflict in Afghanistan."

Panetta struck an optimistic tone during much of his two-day pre-Christmas visit to Afghanistan, where U.S. commanders are charting a course to withdraw most Western forces by 2014 and, they hope, finally conclude a long and costly war.

Panetta's visit to Paktika came as the country's rugged east, where insurgents cross back and forth from lawless areas of western Pakistan, takes on increasing importance following the weakening of the Taliban in its southern heartland over the past 18 months.