OBAMA: NO CHANGE IN US AFGHAN POLICY
Baku, June 25 (AZERTAC). U.S. President Barack Obama says the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan will remain the same despite his decision to replace the top general leading the war effort, VOA reports.
President Obama spoke at a news conference with Russian President Dimitri Medvedev Thursday, a day after accepting General Stanley McChrystal`s resignation and replacing him with U.S. Central Command chief David Petraeus.
President Obama said he is insisting on a unity of purpose in Afghanistan. He said he is confident General Petraeus understands the U.S. strategy in Afghanistan because he helped to shape it.
Earlier Thursday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said he fully supports the president`s decision to replace McChrystal with Petraeus.
Gates said his primary focus remains to ensure U.S.-led success in Afghanistan, and he is confident NATO forces will be able to achieve this under Petraeus` command.
The defense secretary spoke alongside Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who also pledged his support for the president`s decision.
Mullen said there is no excuse for McChrystal`s lack of judgment with respect to the magazine article in which McChrystal and his aides mocked members of the Obama administration.
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