Gen. David Petraeus sworn in as head of U.S. Central Command
As regional commander, Petraeus takes charge of the war in Afghanistan as well as the conflict in Iraq.
Reporting from Macdill Air Force Base In Tampa, Fla. -- Gen. David H. Petraeus took charge of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq today, promising to tackle both immediate and long-term security challenges as he was sworn in as head of U.S. Central Command.
Until last month, Petraeus was the top U.S. commander in Iraq. Now, as the top regional commander, Petraeus will continue to oversee that war, but at Centcom, his most urgent task will be helping to craft a new strategy for the war in Afghanistan.
"Under his leadership our troops have dealt our enemies in Iraq a tremendous blow," Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today. "Now he will take aim at our adversaries in Afghanistan."
The conflict in Afghanistan has grown more violent this year. In its closing days the Bush administration, led by the National Security Council, has initiated a broad review of the current strategy in Afghanistan. The Joint Chiefs of Staff also have a broad planning effort underway, designed in part to present options to the next administration. But in addition to those efforts, Petraeus is working on his own campaign plan for Afghanistan.
For all of the planning efforts, a crucial question concerns the number of additional troops that are needed. President Bush has announced that an additional Army brigade, about 3,500 soldiers, will go to Afghanistan early next year. But U.S. commanders in Afghanistan have said they need as many as 20,000 additional troops.
Any additional forces for Afghanistan will require cuts in the size of the Iraq force. As the top commander in Iraq, Petraeus advocated keeping a high number of troops in Iraq through the elections scheduled for 2009, to preserve the gains that have been made. But commanders in Afghanistan have insisted that far more troops are needed for that fight, to more rapidly train Afghan forces and to counter the Taliban and other militant groups.
Petraeus will now have to help referee that debate.
He will leave Saturday for his first trip to the region in his new job, stopping to confer with officials in Pakistan and other countries within Central Command.
Today, Petraeus offered little insight about his plans. Returning to a theme common to the military, he said the United States must embrace comprehensive approaches to find new answers for a range of problems -- insurgencies, piracy, weapons proliferation and ethno-sectarian conflict.
