Afghan insurgency: Admiral Mullen says Pak Army chief Kayani has made great strides

Washington, Aug.2 (ANI): The US Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, Admiral Mike Mullen, has praised Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff, General Asfaq Pervez Kayani, for his role in curtailing the spread of insurgency in Pakistan's tribal badlands.

In interview given to NBC News, Admiral Mullen said: "He has actually directed his military to take on the insurgent threat in his own country, and he's made great strides."

Admiral Mullen also termed the leak of over 90,000 classified documents on the Afghan War by the web site WikiLeaks as "unprecedented" in its scope and volume, but added that the release of the documents had not caused any revelations that would affect war strategy.

"I certainly understand - it is the ninth year, it is a long time, the sacrifices have been significant," and yet, at the same time, I think the strategies are right. And, the release of these documents, best that I can tell, have not affected the strategy. Many of them were very, very old."

Asked whether the leak documents show the war to be unwinnable, Admiral Mullen said, "We really are at a time in Afghanistan, after the president's review, where we've got the right strategy, the right leadership, and the right resources."

He also admitted that some "elements of the Pakistani intelligence agency that are connected or have had relationships with extremists "is certainly known, and that has to change."

Mullen declined to comment on the status of the investigation by the Pentagon and the Federal Bureau of Investigation into the leak of the documents. (ANI)