Defense Secretary Robert Gates had some optimistic words on his latest tour of Afghanistan. “I do feel like the pieces are coming together,” he said while speaking near Kandahar. But the Taliban is expected to mount an offensive in the spring. “We expect the Taliban to try and take back much of what they’ve lost,” Gates said. “And that will really in many respects be the acid test of how effective the progress we’ve made is going to be.” [Politico]
