2 seconds ago 2009-12-01T21:40:01-08:00
WASHINGTON (AFP) – The United States has no long-term stake in Afghanistan and its primary aim is to defeat Al-Qaeda there, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Sunday.
"We're not interested in staying in Afghanistan. We have no long-term stake there. We want that to be made very clear," she told ABC news.
"We agree that our goal here is to defeat Al-Qaeda. That has been a clear goal and a mission from the president ever since he made his commitment of additional troops back in the spring."
"And we understand that the Afghans themselves need help in order to defend themselves against the Taliban. Those are mutually reinforcing missions but our highest obligation is to the American people," she said.
Clinton, whose interview aired two days after President Barack Obama promised a decision soon on whether to send thousands more US troops to Afghanistan, also pressured Afghan President Hamid Karzai to do more to fight corruption.
"Now we believe that President Karzai and his government can do better. We've delivered that message," she said.
Obama has launched an exhaustive Afghan strategy review over whether or how to reinforce around 68,000 US troops that are fighting in Afghanistan.
