Afghanistan is not in imminent danger of falling to the Taliban, President Barack Obama's national security adviser said Sunday as he downplayed worries that the insurgency could set up a renewed sanctuary for al-Qaida.
Retired Gen. James Jones said the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai must improve and give hope to the people of Afghanistan. He added that he believes the government has a chance to succeed, with the aid of a strong effort by the U.S. to train the Afghan army and police.
"I don't foresee the return of the Taliban. Afghanistan is not in imminent danger of falling," Jones said on CNN's "State of the Union."
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"The al-Qaida presence is very diminished," he said. "The maximum estimate is less than 100 operating in the country, no bases, no ability to launch attacks on either us or our allies."
Jones' view differs from that of the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal has called for an infusion of thousands more U.S. troops, saying that insurgents are gaining strength in Afghanistan and that the U.S. is in danger of failing if more forces are not sent to the fight.
Underscoring those concerns was a deadly battle Sunday near the Pakistan border, where several hundred militant fighters streamed from an Afghan village and a mosque and attacked a pair of remote outposts. Eight U.S. soldiers were killed and as many as seven Afghan forces in one of the fiercest battles of the eight-year war.
Jones said the Karzai government must achieve progress on economic development and must show it can govern without corruption and follow the rule of law.
Obama is considering a range of ideas for changing course in Afghanistan, including pulling back, staying put and sending more troops to fight the insurgency.
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