Rumsfeld Tells Troops U.S. Faces Attack If It Pulls Out

By Associated Press
December 22, 2005

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan — In a holiday season pep talk to U.S. troops, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said an early withdrawal from Afghanistan or Iraq would lead to new terrorist attacks on Americans at home.

Rumsfeld thanked several hundred soldiers for their service, speaking in a heated tent at this base, which serves as the main airfield for U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

"If we were to withdraw from Afghanistan precipitously, or from Iraq, the terrorists would attack us first somewhere else and then they would attack us at home, let there be no doubt," he said.

Earlier in Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, Rumsfeld said reducing the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan would not weaken the campaign against Taliban fighters and Al Qaeda terrorists.

He spoke at a news conference outside the heavily guarded presidential palace after meeting with President Hamid Karzai.

He had announced a day earlier that the size of the U.S. force in Afghanistan would shrink from about 19,000 to about 16,500 by next spring.

Karzai, noting that Vice President Dick Cheney had visited Kabul on Monday, told reporters that the U.S. had assured the Afghans that a reduction in U.S. forces would not undermine joint efforts to improve internal security.

"The United States has assured us of continued support and assistance on all matters," including security, Karzai said.