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CNN Sunday Morning

Rumsfeld Expresses Caution About Northern Alliance Claims

Aired November 11, 2001 - 10:05   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.
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN ANCHOR: And now let's see how Washington is reacting to the latest news from Afghanistan. CNN's Kathleen Koch join us from the Pentagon this morning -- Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jeanne, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has -- is expressing some caution about these reported Northern Alliance gains in northern Afghanistan. Secretary Rumsfeld was speaking on the Sunday morning news broadcast, and he said when it comes to the situation in Mazar-e Sharif, that the Northern Alliance has -- quote -- "effective control," but that there are pockets of resistance that do continue.

And the defense secretary also discussed the very delicate situation of the capital city of Kabul, which the United States has discouraged the Northern Alliance from attacking.

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DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Situation in Kabul ought to reflect what is ultimately going to be needed in Afghanistan, namely, a broadly based government. And so on the one hand you have the Taliban and al Qaeda occupying Kabul, viciously repressive bleeding, killing, denying people any sorts of rights or opportunities. So the - it is important that they be taken out of there, and that Kabul be liberated and put back in the hands of responsible people.

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KOCH: The USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier group, meanwhile, is now and will be, at least starting tomorrow, steaming toward the Persian Gulf area joining again in Operation Enduring Freedom. It is made up of 10 ships and submarines. It is deployed about a month and a half early, 8,500 sailors and marines heading again to the region to help in the fight against terrorism.

Now that as Great Britain has confirmed that it too now has forces on the ground in northern Afghanistan doing much the same thing that U.S. Special Operations Forces are doing as far as assisting and advising the Northern Alliance but Great Britain now giving no exact totals on the number of forces that they've deployed on the ground -- Jeanne.

MESERVE: Kathleen Koch at the Pentagon, thanks. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com