Pentagon's Gates mild-mannered but no soft touch

Washington, Jan 22: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates'mild-mannered public persona could hardly be more different from hisoutspoken predecessor Donald Rumsfeld but his early decisions indicatehe is no soft touch.

''One of my favorite quotes is from Frederick the Great,'' he saidon a seven-nation trip including stops in Afghanistan and Iraq thatwrapped up on the weekend. ''Negotiations without arms are like noteswithout instruments.'' In his first month in the job, he has approvedan increase in the size of the US Army and Marine Corps, backed a newIraq plan that involves more than 21,000 extra troops and indicated hefavors more forces for Afghanistan too.

Those moves suggest more than just a change in style from Rumsfeldto Gates, a former CIA chief called out of academia by President GeorgeW Bush to run two struggling military campaigns crucial to US nationalsecurity and credibility.

Although Rumsfeld was a strong proponent of projecting militarymight, he argued that a lighter presence in countries such as Iraqprevented local forces from becoming too dependent on US troops andundercut accusations of neo-colonialism.

Gates has also approved the deployment of a second aircraftcarrier and Patriot missiles to the Gulf region -- moves widely seen asa warning to Iran.

Yet the white-haired former university president has undertakenall those changes while giving the impression of an affable newcomerstill learning the ropes.

''To the extent that this is a fact-finding trip, I've found atleast one fact,'' said Gates, 63, near the end of a trip that featured13 plane flights and a helicopter ride over snowy mountains to a remoteoutpost of eastern Afghanistan. ''I'm too old to do seven countries in5-1/2 days.''

Commanders' Advice

Repeatedly on the trip, which alsotook him to London, NATO headquarters in Brussels, Saudi Arabia, Qatarand Bahrain, Gates deflected questions by saying he had not been in thejob long enough to answer them.

He has presented his decisions simply as the result of advice from military commanders and other experts.

''If the people who are leading the struggle out here believe thatthere is a need for some additional help to sustain the success thatwe've had, I'm going to be very sympathetic to that kind of arequest,'' he said in Afghanistan.

That can also be seen as a change from Rumsfeld, often accused ofignoring the advice of his commanders, although his supporters havedenied that charge and suggested it was a convenient way for militarychiefs to avoid blame.

Gates's friendly, low-key public style has also won him ahoneymoon with reporters and members of the US Congress, both of whomhad a prickly relationship with Rumsfeld.

That could soon change, however, above all if the new plan tostabilize Iraq is not successful. In an unpopular war that has alreadykilled more than 3,000 US troops, his decision to increase force levelsis a high-stakes gamble.

''Sure, there's a risk,'' Gates said. But he added, ''I think ifyou put your personal interests -- including protecting your reputation-- ahead of a sense of duty, you've got your values screwed up.''

Reuters>