Petraeus Supports Obama’s Extended Time on Afghan StrategyPetraeus Supports Obama’s Extended Time on Afghan Strategy
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
Army Gen. David H. Petraeus spoke at the Navy Memorial here as part of the American Veterans Center Annual Conference.
As attention shifts to Afghanistan, Petraeus said, people must remember that Afghanistan is not Iraq.
“All counterinsurgencies are local,” he explained. “You have to recognize the need for a truly nuanced and granular appreciation for local circumstances.”
Americans going to the country must understand the local customs and culture and the local power structures. “We are trying to help Afghanistan re-establish traditional ruling structures: the traditional [religious leaders], the traditional tribal leaders, who in many areas have been pushed aside, or killed, or run off by the Taliban or the more extreme leaders,” he said.
“There have been very good debates, very good discussion,” he said. “This is the kind of intellectual discourse you want. It does sharpen your thinking. It does expose differences of opinion. It helps you come to grips with the assumptions.”
The president has committed an enormous amount of time to the process, and it is an appropriate use of his time, Petraeus said. “This decision will be forthcoming pretty soon, perhaps when he comes back from the Asia trip, and then we will all press forward,” he said. “And I think we will do so with enormous benefit from having had these discussions.”