THE
VICE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much. Please be seated. And,
General Barno, I want thank you for the introduction this morning, and
Brigadier General Jacoby, thank you all for your hospitality. It's an
honor to be here, and we appreciate the warm welcome. We bring greetings
from home - and good wishes from your Commander-in-Chief, President
George W. Bush.
I am pleased, as well, to introduce Lynne. The General already
mentioned her. And our delegation is here, as well, in order to witness
the inauguration of President Karzai. The fall election in Afghanistan
was a great and a historic moment for the people of the country. Come to
think of it, we just had a big election back in America, and that turned
out pretty well, too. (Laughter and applause.) That's not a partisan
comment. (Laughter.)
Lynne and I have been looking forward to our visit to Afghanistan.
It's a chance to remind the people of Afghanistan that America stands
with them in the work of setting up the world's newest democracy. This
journey is also a chance to show our gratitude to each and every one of
you - and to all the Americans and the coalition forces out in the field
at this very hour. You're doing a tremendous job, and America is proud
of you.
Witnessing the swearing-in of an elected Afghan President, some might
find it easy to overlook the true magnitude of the event - and all that
our coalition did to make it possible. We're standing in the country
that just held the first free elections in its 5,000-year history. Just
eight months ago, the United Nations hoped that six and a half million
Afghans would register to vote. The number turned out to be more than 10
million; and on election day, they showed up at some 22,000 polling
stations across the country. Near one location a coalition officer told
of seeing a line of people two miles long, all walking down a road on
their way to the polls. He spoke of old people walking and being ferried
in goat carts, amputees on crutches, droves of people moving towards the
polling booths, and then, late in the evening, aged adults running to
beat the deadline to get in line in order to vote.
In scenes like that across Afghanistan, we see the real meaning
behind these elections. For the first time, the people of this country
are looking confident about a future of freedom and peace. Across the
broader Middle East, people look to Afghanistan and see something new
and hopeful in the world's most troubled region. And a watching world
has seen, once again, that the United States military is one of the
greatest forces for good on this Earth.
It is my privilege to congratulate all of those of you today who will
be reenlisting. You've accepted a big job, and a deployment some 7,000
miles from home is never easy on you or on your families. You're giving
some of the best years of your lives to the service, to the country - at
the very time we need you the most. Your work is part of a worldwide
campaign against terror. The task is immense, it is urgent, and it is
vital to our country's freedom and security. Your children, and my
grandchildren, will live in freedom tomorrow because of what you are
doing today.
We have needed you to wage a new kind of war in a new and dangerous
era. I was at the White House on the morning of September 11th, 2001 and
that day changed everything for our country. In the space of a few
hours, we saw the violence and the grief that terrorism can inflict. We
saw an enemy whose hatred of us is limitless. What this enemy wants is
to impose their way of life on the rest of us, and to do so they are
prepared to slaughter anyone who stands in their way. This is not an
enemy we can reason with or negotiate with or appease. This is - to put
it simply - an enemy that we must destroy.
To win this war, America is applying a doctrine that is understood by
all: Every person, group, or regime that harbors or supports terror is
equally guilty of terrorist crimes, and will be held to account. Here in
Afghanistan, the Taliban found out what we meant. Within weeks of 9/11,
American forces were on the ground here, teaming up with Afghan freedom
fighters to destroy the camps where terrorists trained to kill Americans
and to take down the Taliban regime. Even though it's been just over
three years since the battle, some have forgotten the difficulties
involved in the Afghan campaign. As one newspaper columnist noted,
Afghanistan was the graveyard of empires. Rugged, mountainous,
impenetrable, recalcitrant and peopled by an enemy hardened and
fanatical, it was considered unconquerable.
But then the United States military arrived. With swift, precise
action, we and our allies captured or killed hundreds of al Qaeda and
liberated the 25 million people of Afghanistan. (Applause.)
The record of the last several years - the swift action, the
flexibility and skill of our units, the performance of duty in the
toughest of circumstances - constitutes another great chapter in the
history of our military, and of our nation. Because our nation has been
strong and resolute in the cause of freedom, Afghanistan will never go
back to the camp of tyranny and terror. And America will never go back
to the false comforts of the world before 9/11. Terrorist attacks are
not caused by the use of strength. They are invited by the perception of
weakness. And this nation has made a decision: We will engage the
enemies - facing them with our military far from home, so we do not have
to face them on the streets of our own cities.
America's willingness to lead the fight against terror has come at a
cost. We have lost some of the finest people in our military, whose
names we will honor forever. Recently, we experienced the great loss of
Lieutenant Colonel Mike McMahon and the cavalrymen of the 34th Calvary.
By their sacrifice, and by your continuing mission, we will one day
overcome the threat of global terror. To fully and finally defeat that
threat, we are encouraging hope and democracy in the broader Middle
East, as an alternative to the hatred and the despair that leads to
violence. As Americans, we believe that everyone has a right to live in
freedom. As Americans, we know that when men and women are given the
rights and opportunity of a free society, they will turn their energies
toward the pursuit of peace. And our actions here in Afghanistan have
brought that day closer. A dictatorship that had harbored the most
vicious terror network in history is now history. Today this country is
a rising democracy, and an ally in the war on terror, and the American
people are safer for it.
I'd also like to recognize our coalition partners who continue to
serve in Afghanistan. Engineers from Korea recently improved the Bagram
flight lines and observation posts. Troops from Australia are busy
clearing the minefields that remain. Infantrymen from Romania help guard
the streets here at Kandahar. And Provincial Reconstruction Team members
from New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Germany are collaborating with
Task Force Coyote pioneers from Poland and Slovakia to rebuild schools,
reconstruct bridges, and provide other essential help to people in rural
areas.
Our coalition still has important work to do. Freedom still has
enemies here in Afghanistan - and you are here to make those enemies
miserable. (Applause.)
I want to thank all the units in Task Force 76 for everything you do.
The 25th Infantry secured the polling sites in the Oruzgan province
after receiving insurgent fire. They also made sure that the Afghan
Police Force is trained and equipped.
The 455th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron, with their A-10
Thunderbolts, continues to provide their unique overhead roar to deter
the enemy. And if that's not enough, they provide close air support and
cover fire to ground troops.
The active, Reserve, and National Guard teams are working closer than
ever during escort convoys, troop defense, and Afghan presidential
escort.
The Delta-5 external security patrols conduct 24/7 protection of
Bagram personnel and the Army, Navy, and Marine fixed-wing aircraft.
The 416th and 109th Engineering Group and Task Force Coyote have
completed more than 725 projects, ranging from Forward Operating Base
construction; laying down 70,000 cubic meters of concrete on the Bagram
and Kandahar runways; to clearing 900,000 square miles of minefields
with an assurance rate of 99.6 percent.
I also want to recognize the kind and decent way you have treated the
people of Afghanistan. You've shown a willingness to go "outside the
wire" -- reaching out to Afghan men, women, and children and helping
them improve the quality of their lives. The daily good works of our
military aren't always talked about in the news media. But you are once
again showing the true, honorable character of the United States
military.
I want every one of you to know that in the work ahead, President
Bush is going to back you 100 percent. Our job is to provide you with
everything you need to do your mission, and to support military families
at home. And we'll keep that commitment to all of you.
Again, I want to thank all of you for your service, and for the honor
of being here. Especially during the holidays, you need to know how much
you're appreciated. You are constantly in the thoughts and prayers of
your fellow citizens. We admire your sense of duty. We deeply respect
your determination to take the fight to the enemy and to look out for
your comrades. Your Commander-in-Chief is proud of you, and you have the
gratitude of the United States of America.
Thank you very much. (Applause.)