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Rumsfeld Set to Detail Plans for U.S. Military to Begin Training an Afghan National Army

Aired March 25, 2002 - 10:20   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Now live to the Pentagon for the latest on an expected announcement in the war on Afghanistan.

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr there live for us this morning.

Good morning, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Well, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is expected to hold a press briefing here in the Pentagon in just over two hours from now. We expect to hear from him the details of a plan for U.S. military to begin training an Afghan national army. Now this plan has been in the works for is some time, but we are told Secretary Rumsfeld signed off on the final details, and it is expected this training program will begin shortly.

The idea is for the U.S. military in Afghanistan to train Afghans that can then become officers and enlisted personnel in a new Afghan national army. An army in Afghanistan is considered essential for the security of the country, the stability of the government, and to keep Afghanistan from again becoming a haven for terrorists.

But this is going to be a very rudimentary program. U.S. military is are going to conduct leadership skill training, perhaps basic weapons training, teach Afghans to basically operate as soldiers in an army. Everyone knows that the Afghans are very good fighters. That's not what they need to learn. The major challenge in this new program is going to be convincing the warlords to turn over their soldiers to a centralized army, where they will have to obey orders and conduct military campaigns much like other countries do -- Carol.

LIN: Boy, that's going to be a big challenge.

Barbara, so there is no immediate or short-term plan for this Afghan national army to take over a peacekeeping role then, right?

STARR: Well, the general assessment is that they would not be ready for that for some time. Of course, the problem is that the international peacekeeping force is not expected to stay in Afghanistan for the indeterminate future. The idea is that those people will go home, and that the Afghan national army will eventually take over the security of the country, so this training program that Rumsfeld is expected to announce is a central first step, officials say, to making all of that happen, making the Afghans have the full responsibility for the security of their country.

LIN: Big challenge indeed.

Thank you very much, Barbara Starr, reporting live from the Pentagon.

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