Petraeus at Atlantic Council
Lt.Gen. Brent Scrowcroft, GEN David Petraeus, and Atlantic Council President and CEO Fred Kempe
I had the privilege of sitting in on an Atlantic Council meeting with General David Petraeus this afternoon. He’s making the rounds in Washington in preparation for taking over CENTCOM. He mostly came to listen to selected members of our Strategic Advisors Group but he also shared his thoughts with us on the important challenges in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which he termed “the long theater in the Long War.”
The bottom line is that winning in Afghanistan will require “sustained commitment” from the United States and NATO on the military front but, far more importantly, on the diplomatic and development fronts.
I find it extremely interesting that Petraeus did not think the surge would work. Yet, McCain says that opposing the surge makes Obama unsuited to be President while still saying he would take Pertaeus advice on what to do. Is this a major inconsistency for McCain?
Obviously I don’t know what else Gen. Petraeus may have said, but I would amend the one-sentence version thusly (additional language in boldface is mine):
The bottom line is that winning in Afghanistan will require “sustained commitment†from the United States and NATO on the military front but, far more importantly, on the diplomatic and development fronts, in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.