"We had been told, on leaving our native soil, that we were to defend the sacred rights conferred on us by so many of our citizens settled overseas, so many years of our presence, so many benefits brought by us to populations in need of our assistance and civilization. We were able to verify that this was true, and because it was true, we did not hesitate to shed our quota of blood, to sacrifice our youth and our hopes. We regretted nothing, but whereas we over here are inspired by their frame of mind, I am told that in Rome factions and conspiracies are rife, that treachery flourishes, and that many people in their uncertainty and confusion lend a ready ear to the dire temptations of relinquishment and vilify our action. I cannot believe that all this true, and yet recent wars have shown how pernicious such a state of mind could be and to where it could lead. Make haste to reassure me, I beg you, and tell me that our fellow citizens understand us, support us and protect us as we protect the glory of the Empire. If it should be otherwise, if we should leave our bleached bones on these desert sands in vain, then BEWARE THE ANGER OF THE LEGIONS!!"
Aides to U.S. general in Afghanistan slam Obama: report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Aides to the top U.S. general in Afghanistan insulted some of President Barack Obama’s closest advisers, calling one a “clown” and another a “wounded animal,” in an article to be published Friday in Rolling Stone magazine.
The article also quotes an aide describing the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal’s “disappointment” with his initial one-on-one meeting with Obama last year.
Quoting all the McChrystal aides anonymously, the article portrays a split between the U.S. military and Obama’s advisers at an extremely sensitive moment for the Pentagon, which is fending off criticism of its strategy to turn around the nearly nine-year-old Afghan war.
The Pentagon had no immediate comment about the article, which has been brought to the attention of senior officials.
It quotes a member of McChrystal’s team making jokes about Vice President Joe Biden, who was seen as critical of the general’s efforts to escalate the conflict and who had favored a more limited counter-terrorism approach.
“Biden?” the aide was quoted as saying. “Did you say: Bite me?”
Another aide called White House National Security Adviser Jim Jones, a retired four star general, a “clown” who was “stuck in 1985.”
It quoted an adviser to McChrystal dismissing an early meeting with Obama as a “10-minute photo op.”
“Obama clearly didn’t know anything about him, who he was. The boss was pretty disappointed,” the adviser told the magazine.
McChrystal, a famous workaholic said to sleep just four hours a day, was brought into Afghanistan a year ago after his predecessor was pushed out.
The article portrays his teams as disapproving of the Obama administration, with the exception of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who backed McCrystal’s request for additional troops in Afghanistan.
Some of the strongest criticism was reserved for Richard Holbrooke, Obama’s special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“The boss says he’s like a wounded animal,” a member of the general’s team is quoted as saying. “Holbrooke keeps hearing rumors that he’s going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous.”
McChrystal was quoted as saying he felt “betrayed” by the leak of a classified cable from U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry last year. The cable raised doubts about sending more troops to shore up an Afghan government already lacking in credibility.
“I like Karl, I’ve known him for years, but they’d never said anything like that to us before,” McChrystal was quoted as saying in the article.
“Here’s one that covers his flank for the history books. Now if we fail, they can say, ‘I told you so.’”
MORE FROM GUARDIAN (UK)
Stanley McChrystal recalled over Rolling Stone article
US commander in Afghanistan apologises for magazine article in which he criticises Barack Obama and ambassador to Kabul
General Stanley McChrystal, the US commander of all Nato-led forces in Afghanistan, has been recalled to Washington after he criticised Barack Obama's administration in a magazine profile due to be published later this week.
A Nato official confirmed that McChrystal would travel to Washington tomorrow to explain the Rolling Stone article, in which he said that he felt "betrayed" by the US ambassador to Kabul, Karl Eikenberry. One of his aides also told the magazine that McChrystal was "disappointed" by his first meeting with an unprepared Obama.
The official was unable to say how long the general would be away, but did say that McChrystal believed he had largely "sorted" the situation after immediately calling the people he had attacked in the profile to apologise.
Earlier today, McChrystal attended a meeting with the Afghan president, Hamed Karzai, with Eikenberry and Richard Holbrooke, the US special representative whom McChrystal also belittled in the magazine article.
A US diplomat said that while "the story sucked" and that McChrystal "running amok" was "kind of embarrassing", the row would not affect policy or the way the men worked together.
Earlier today, McChrystal issued a statement offering his "sincerest apology" for the comments and the article. "It was a mistake reflecting poor judgment and should never have happened," he said.
The statement adds: "Throughout my career, I have lived by the principles of personal honour and professional integrity. What is reflected in this article falls far short of that standard."
According to the article, due to be published on Friday, although McChrystal voted for Obama, the two didn't get on from the start. And Obama felt McChrystal was too outspoken last autumn when he called for more troops to be sent to Afghanistan.
"I found that time painful," McChrystal admitted in the article. "I was selling an unsellable position."
Obama agreed to deploy an extra 30,000 US troops but only after months of dithering that many in the military found frustrating. The troop commitment was coupled with a pledge to begin bringing them home in July 2011, setting what strategists advising McChrystal regarded as an arbitrary deadline.
McChrystal's statement said: "I have enormous respect and admiration for President Obama and his national security team, and for the civilian leaders and troops fighting this war and I remain committed to ensuring its successful outcome."
The profile, headlined The Runaway General, emerged from several weeks of interviews and travel with McChrystal's tight circle of aides.
Describing Obama's first White House meeting as a "photo-op", one aide told the magazine: "Obama clearly didn't know anything about him, who he was. The boss was pretty disappointed."
The article lists administration figures said to back McChrystal, including defence secretary Robert Gates and secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
But the vice-president, Joe Biden, heads a list of those against him. The article quotes members of McChrystal's team making jokes about Biden. "Biden? Did you say: Bite me?" an aide said. Another McChrystal aide reportedly called the White House national security adviser, Jim Jones, a "clown" who was "stuck in 1985".
The article claims McChrystal has seized control of the war "by never taking his eye off the real enemy: The wimps in the White House".
Biden initially opposed McChrystal's proposal for additional forces last year, favouring a narrower counterterrorism strategy.
A leaked internal document revealed that Eikenberry shared those doubts about the additional troops. In it, Eikenberry said the Afghan president Hamid Karzai was not a reliable partner for the counterinsurgency strategy.
In the Rolling Stone article, McChrystal said he felt "betrayed" and accused the ambassador of blaming others.
"Here's one that covers his flank for the history books," McChrystal told the magazine. "Now, if we fail, they can say 'I told you so.'"
Some of the strongest criticism was reserved for Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"The boss says he's like a wounded animal," a member of the general's team is quoted as saying. "Holbrooke keeps hearing rumours that he's going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous."
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Aides to the top U.S. general in Afghanistan insulted some of President Barack Obama’s closest advisers, calling one a “clown” and another a “wounded animal,” in an article to be published Friday in Rolling Stone magazine.
The article also quotes an aide describing the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan General Stanley McChrystal’s “disappointment” with his initial one-on-one meeting with Obama last year.
Quoting all the McChrystal aides anonymously, the article portrays a split between the U.S. military and Obama’s advisers at an extremely sensitive moment for the Pentagon, which is fending off criticism of its strategy to turn around the nearly nine-year-old Afghan war.
The Pentagon had no immediate comment about the article, which has been brought to the attention of senior officials.
It quotes a member of McChrystal’s team making jokes about Vice President Joe Biden, who was seen as critical of the general’s efforts to escalate the conflict and who had favored a more limited counter-terrorism approach.
“Biden?” the aide was quoted as saying. “Did you say: Bite me?”
Another aide called White House National Security Adviser Jim Jones, a retired four star general, a “clown” who was “stuck in 1985.”
It quoted an adviser to McChrystal dismissing an early meeting with Obama as a “10-minute photo op.”
“Obama clearly didn’t know anything about him, who he was. The boss was pretty disappointed,” the adviser told the magazine.
McChrystal, a famous workaholic said to sleep just four hours a day, was brought into Afghanistan a year ago after his predecessor was pushed out.
The article portrays his teams as disapproving of the Obama administration, with the exception of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who backed McCrystal’s request for additional troops in Afghanistan.
Some of the strongest criticism was reserved for Richard Holbrooke, Obama’s special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“The boss says he’s like a wounded animal,” a member of the general’s team is quoted as saying. “Holbrooke keeps hearing rumors that he’s going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous.”
McChrystal was quoted as saying he felt “betrayed” by the leak of a classified cable from U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry last year. The cable raised doubts about sending more troops to shore up an Afghan government already lacking in credibility.
“I like Karl, I’ve known him for years, but they’d never said anything like that to us before,” McChrystal was quoted as saying in the article.
“Here’s one that covers his flank for the history books. Now if we fail, they can say, ‘I told you so.’”
MORE FROM GUARDIAN (UK)
Stanley McChrystal recalled over Rolling Stone article
US commander in Afghanistan apologises for magazine article in which he criticises Barack Obama and ambassador to Kabul
General Stanley McChrystal, the US commander of all Nato-led forces in Afghanistan, has been recalled to Washington after he criticised Barack Obama's administration in a magazine profile due to be published later this week.
A Nato official confirmed that McChrystal would travel to Washington tomorrow to explain the Rolling Stone article, in which he said that he felt "betrayed" by the US ambassador to Kabul, Karl Eikenberry. One of his aides also told the magazine that McChrystal was "disappointed" by his first meeting with an unprepared Obama.
The official was unable to say how long the general would be away, but did say that McChrystal believed he had largely "sorted" the situation after immediately calling the people he had attacked in the profile to apologise.
Earlier today, McChrystal attended a meeting with the Afghan president, Hamed Karzai, with Eikenberry and Richard Holbrooke, the US special representative whom McChrystal also belittled in the magazine article.
A US diplomat said that while "the story sucked" and that McChrystal "running amok" was "kind of embarrassing", the row would not affect policy or the way the men worked together.
Earlier today, McChrystal issued a statement offering his "sincerest apology" for the comments and the article. "It was a mistake reflecting poor judgment and should never have happened," he said.
The statement adds: "Throughout my career, I have lived by the principles of personal honour and professional integrity. What is reflected in this article falls far short of that standard."
According to the article, due to be published on Friday, although McChrystal voted for Obama, the two didn't get on from the start. And Obama felt McChrystal was too outspoken last autumn when he called for more troops to be sent to Afghanistan.
"I found that time painful," McChrystal admitted in the article. "I was selling an unsellable position."
Obama agreed to deploy an extra 30,000 US troops but only after months of dithering that many in the military found frustrating. The troop commitment was coupled with a pledge to begin bringing them home in July 2011, setting what strategists advising McChrystal regarded as an arbitrary deadline.
McChrystal's statement said: "I have enormous respect and admiration for President Obama and his national security team, and for the civilian leaders and troops fighting this war and I remain committed to ensuring its successful outcome."
The profile, headlined The Runaway General, emerged from several weeks of interviews and travel with McChrystal's tight circle of aides.
Describing Obama's first White House meeting as a "photo-op", one aide told the magazine: "Obama clearly didn't know anything about him, who he was. The boss was pretty disappointed."
The article lists administration figures said to back McChrystal, including defence secretary Robert Gates and secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
But the vice-president, Joe Biden, heads a list of those against him. The article quotes members of McChrystal's team making jokes about Biden. "Biden? Did you say: Bite me?" an aide said. Another McChrystal aide reportedly called the White House national security adviser, Jim Jones, a "clown" who was "stuck in 1985".
The article claims McChrystal has seized control of the war "by never taking his eye off the real enemy: The wimps in the White House".
Biden initially opposed McChrystal's proposal for additional forces last year, favouring a narrower counterterrorism strategy.
A leaked internal document revealed that Eikenberry shared those doubts about the additional troops. In it, Eikenberry said the Afghan president Hamid Karzai was not a reliable partner for the counterinsurgency strategy.
In the Rolling Stone article, McChrystal said he felt "betrayed" and accused the ambassador of blaming others.
"Here's one that covers his flank for the history books," McChrystal told the magazine. "Now, if we fail, they can say 'I told you so.'"
Some of the strongest criticism was reserved for Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"The boss says he's like a wounded animal," a member of the general's team is quoted as saying. "Holbrooke keeps hearing rumours that he's going to get fired, so that makes him dangerous."
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