Thank you General David Petraeus!

Thank you General David Petraeus!

Posted in Afghanistan | 27-Nov-12 | Author: Hubertus Hoffmann

During an FBI inquiry it was revealed that General David Petraeus had engaged in an extra-marital affair and that news has now also been made public. As a result, General Petraeus made the decision to resign from his position as Director of the CIA. In the minds of some it will affect their ability to view him as an American war hero, which in spite of all he still deserves. Several legendary leaders in years past such as U.S. President John F. Kennedy, FBI Founder Edgar Hoover, U.K. Prime Minister Winston Churchill or U.S. General Eisenhower all had their share of human frailties, yet have retained honours for the bulk of their work done for America and the Free World.

It is nevertheless necessary to give General David Petraeus his due and that is to thank him for all that he did to save the lives of thousands of American and Allied soldiers on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as the support he gave to the local forces for democracy, dignity and human rights versus the terrorists, totalitarian and sectarian demons.

Dr. Hubertus Hoffmann, President of the Worldsecuritynetwork Foundation, met General David Petraeus in Afghanistan in 2011: "He dedicated his life not only to the American people, but as well all the local men and women and children in Iraq and Afghanistan who do not want to live in the stone-age but in peace and with human dignity."

He turned Iraq around into a face saving exit for the United States and its allies. General Petraeus and his predecessor General Stanley McChrystal as ISAF commanders developed and implemented a fresh COIN strategy for Afghanistan only three years ago- after almost 10 long years of trying to push the Taliban back- and make an exit for the U.S. and NATO possible in 2014.

Petraeus dedicated his life not only to the American people, but as well to all the local men, women and children in Iraq and Afghanistan who do not want to live in the stone-age but in peace and with human dignity. He contained the radicals and terrorists including global terror networks like al Qaeda.

When I met him in Mazar-e-Sharif in February last year, I interviewed him for the World Security Network ( see WSN TV Videos ) and was very impressed by the knowledgeable and articulate words of the ISAF commander and his clearly defined visions.

We talked about his father-in-law LtGen William A. Knowlton, who had been Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy in West Point and a good friend of my mentor Dr Fritz Kraemer who served in the Pentagon for decades (see www.worldsecuritynetwork.com/fritzkraemer). In a letter from July 3rd, 1978 Knowlton wrote his friend Kraemer: "Your record of constant and faithful devotion to our country and to mankind is most remarkable...You have had an impact upon America which has been far more vast than most people realize." These remarks also hold true for Gen. David Petraeus.

May he and his remarkable wife Holly find a rapprochement and inner peace again and may he return to service for his country America and the Free World soon. Networking a safer world still needs him.

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