US ready to defend interests in ME for decades: Gates

[razors edge]

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C03%5C17%5Cstory_17-3-2007_pg7_32

TAMPA: The US is ready to defend its interests in the Middle East for decades to come, even though the Iraq war has been tougher than expected, Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Friday.

Gates made the comments at a ceremony where Navy Admiral William Fallon was being formally installed as the new head of US Central Command, putting him in charge of American forces in the Middle East and Central Asia. Gates said the United States would continue to stand by its allies in the region.

The US is “dedicated to strengthening those commitments and defending our interests for the decades to come. And we will do all in our power to protect and defend our homeland,” he said.

Fallon is replacing Gen John Abizaid, who led Central Command since 2003 but is leaving as part of a reshuffling of Mideast military commanders by President George W Bush. Besides Iraq, Fallon will also oversee the war in Afghanistan, where the US and its allies are expecting a fresh Taliban offensive as the weather warms this spring.