Gates cautions against rapid US buildup in Afghanistan

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates cautioned Tuesday against a rapid US military expansion in Afghanistan, stressing instead the need to build up the Afghan army.

A top military adviser to Gates also told lawmakers that there were practical obstacles to a rapid shift of forces from Iraq to Afghanistan which could not be fully overcome even if a US drawdown in Iraq were accelerated.

General James Cartwright, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said those obstacles included a lack of the support forces and equipment, such as helicopters and vehicles.

Gates, meanwhile, suggested that a rapid US military expansion could be counter-productive in a country with a history of resistance to outsiders.

"I think we need to think about how heavy a military footprint the United states ought to have in Afghanistan," Gates told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The US defense secretary added that Washington may be "better off channelling resources into building and expanding the size of the Afghan National Army as quickly as possible, as opposed to a much larger western footprint in a country that has never been hospitable to foreigners -- regardless of why they are there." More