John R. Allen Quotes

#1. Al Qaeda has come back. Al Qaeda is a resilient organization. But they're not here in large numbers. But al Qaeda doesn't have to be anywhere in large numbers.

John R. Allen

#2. America will honor our treaty obligations.

John R. Allen

#3. Planning is really the hallmark of any large military formation, and it's typically a weakness in new formations and new armies.

John R. Allen

#4. There is a direct line relationship between what happened in Afghanistan in the work up to 11 September 2001 and what we're doing in Afghanistan today.

John R. Allen

#5. Protecting Afghan civilians is the cornerstone of our mission.

John R. Allen

#6. We will oppose and resist tyranny as we will defeat evil.

John R. Allen

#7. We don't want the Taliban to put down roots, or the al Qaeda to put down roots in Afghanistan that can facilitate Afghanistan becoming - once again - a launching pad for international terrorism.

John R. Allen

#8. Afghanistan is going to be here a long time, and what's critical is that Afghanistan's relationship with its neighbors are, to the maximum extent they can be, constructive and operationally useful.

John R. Allen

#9. We don't see that the Taliban ultimately can succeed, and it's a combination both of what the international community can do to support Afghanistan, not just in the short term, but over the long term.

John R. Allen

#10. To our enemies - to our enemies - we will pursue you as only America can. You will fear us.

John R. Allen

#11. I can't spend a lot of time worrying about the numbers at home. I've got to focus on the mission.

John R. Allen

#12. To ISIS and others: We will defeat you.

John R. Allen

#13. And the narrative for the Taliban that they can wait us out is a flawed narrative. I think that the unambiguous international support for Afghanistan has been a very powerful message. You know, that was the message that came out of the NATO summit. We will not abandon Afghanistan.

John R. Allen

#14. To our allies and our friends and our partners. Listen closely. We are with you. America will not abandon you.

John R. Allen

#15. There are tens of thousands of interactions every single day across Afghanistan between the Afghan troops and International Security Assistance Force. On most of those, every single day we continue to deepen and broaden the relationship we seek.

John R. Allen

#16. Al Qaeda has significance beyond its numbers, frankly. And so for us, our 24-hour-a-day objective is to seek out those al Qaeda cells. And, as we seek them out, to target them and eliminate them. And we're doing that 24 hours a day.

John R. Allen

#17. I seek as much as I can to mitigate risk.

John R. Allen

#18. One would think that if you're anonymous, you'd do anything you want, but groups have their own sense of community and what we can do.

John R. Allen

#19. We're probably going to see some post-2014 military presence - some U.S. presence and a NATO presence - and while we've got much work to do in the next 29 months, we'll have additional time later for the continued professionalization of the Afghan security forces.

John R. Allen

#20. To those acting against peace, civilization and the world order: We will oppose you.

John R. Allen

#21. The best thing I ever did was give my family everything I could.

John R. Allen

#22. My fellow Americans, from the battlefield to the capitals of our allies and friends and partners, the free peoples of the world look to America as the last best hope for peace and for liberty for all humankind, for we are the greatest country on this planet.

John R. Allen

#23. You know, great powers don't get angry, great powers don't make decisions hastily in a crisis.

John R. Allen

#24. The thing that I'm always left with is this overwhelming desire for people to be rooted and the only way that they feel rooted is through another person.

John R. Allen