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CNN Live Sunday
Rumsfeld Visits U.S., NATO Troops in Afghanistan
Aired September 07, 2003 - 10:03 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.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, he had left Iraq earlier. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld moved on to Kabul and he's offering more U.S. support for Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai. After a visit to Iraq, Rumsfeld flew to the Afghan capital, also visiting U.S. and NATO troops while there.
CNN's Chris Plante has more on the Rumsfeld visit in this report now from the Pentagon. Chris, good morning. Thanks for joining us.
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Sean. Yes, Secretary Rumsfeld is in the region meeting with military commanders and with troops. He's also meeting with political leaders. And, as you said, he left Iraq after a couple of days there and is now in Afghanistan.
A couple of hours ago, he held a press conference with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, and during that press conference, he stressed the importance of the international force there and said that it was important to continue to expand that force in an effort to restore order. He also talked about the long-term goals there and the big picture.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: The task is to create an environment that's hospitable for people, for investment, for enterprise, for commerce. And that is where physical reconstruction comes from. It comes from that confidence. And there are some very positive indicators in this country. One, is just driving down the street and seeing the economic activity that's taking place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLANTE: For his part, Hamid Karzai, the man with the toughest job in politics today, talked about his work with the United States and with Pervez Musharraf, the president of Pakistan, next door, who is also involved in the effort there to contain remnants of the Taliban moving back and forth across the border and implicitly also members of al Qaeda.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: We are definitely concerned about the increased activity of the Taliban on the Pakistan- Afghanistan border. We are having a mechanism that's called a (UNINTELLIGIBLE) arrangement between Afghanistan and the United States and Pakistan. We've been discussing these developments of that mechanism.
I'm also personally in touch with President Musharraf. He has promised that everything will be done to stop terrorist activities to Afghanistan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLANTE: Meanwhile, intense fighting continues in the southeastern Afghanistan, where about 500 or so members of the Taliban had been spotted gathering about a week ago in Operation Mountain Viper, involving U.S. troops from the 10th Mountain Division, along with Special Operations Forces and also Afghan tribal forces, going in there, attacking the Taliban, now on the retreat, according to Pentagon officials. But in the last week or so, probably about 100 of those Taliban fighters have been killed and more captured -- Sean.
CALLEBS: Indeed, bloody fighting in recent weeks. Chris Plante at the Pentagon, thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 7, 2003 - 10:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: Heidi, he had left Iraq earlier. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld moved on to Kabul and he's offering more U.S. support for Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai. After a visit to Iraq, Rumsfeld flew to the Afghan capital, also visiting U.S. and NATO troops while there.
CNN's Chris Plante has more on the Rumsfeld visit in this report now from the Pentagon. Chris, good morning. Thanks for joining us.
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Sean. Yes, Secretary Rumsfeld is in the region meeting with military commanders and with troops. He's also meeting with political leaders. And, as you said, he left Iraq after a couple of days there and is now in Afghanistan.
A couple of hours ago, he held a press conference with Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, and during that press conference, he stressed the importance of the international force there and said that it was important to continue to expand that force in an effort to restore order. He also talked about the long-term goals there and the big picture.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD RUMSFELD, DEFENSE SECRETARY: The task is to create an environment that's hospitable for people, for investment, for enterprise, for commerce. And that is where physical reconstruction comes from. It comes from that confidence. And there are some very positive indicators in this country. One, is just driving down the street and seeing the economic activity that's taking place.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLANTE: For his part, Hamid Karzai, the man with the toughest job in politics today, talked about his work with the United States and with Pervez Musharraf, the president of Pakistan, next door, who is also involved in the effort there to contain remnants of the Taliban moving back and forth across the border and implicitly also members of al Qaeda.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRESIDENT HAMID KARZAI, AFGHANISTAN: We are definitely concerned about the increased activity of the Taliban on the Pakistan- Afghanistan border. We are having a mechanism that's called a (UNINTELLIGIBLE) arrangement between Afghanistan and the United States and Pakistan. We've been discussing these developments of that mechanism.
I'm also personally in touch with President Musharraf. He has promised that everything will be done to stop terrorist activities to Afghanistan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLANTE: Meanwhile, intense fighting continues in the southeastern Afghanistan, where about 500 or so members of the Taliban had been spotted gathering about a week ago in Operation Mountain Viper, involving U.S. troops from the 10th Mountain Division, along with Special Operations Forces and also Afghan tribal forces, going in there, attacking the Taliban, now on the retreat, according to Pentagon officials. But in the last week or so, probably about 100 of those Taliban fighters have been killed and more captured -- Sean.
CALLEBS: Indeed, bloody fighting in recent weeks. Chris Plante at the Pentagon, thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
