Robert M. Gates

06 February 2008 -- In appearances before Congress on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and a top military official are expected to underscore decreased violence in Iraq. But they are likely to face strong questioning from lawmakers about ongoing war costs.

When President Bush's budget for the 2009 fiscal year was sent to Congress this week, Secretary Gates defended the $515 billion request from the Pentagon.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Jan. 24, 2008 – The Multinational Force Iraq commander will stay where he is for the time being, and no decision has been made to shorten tour lengths for Army personnel in the U.S. Central Command area of operations, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a Pentagon news conference today.

President Bush wants Army Gen. David H. Petraeus to stay “right where he is at least through late fall and maybe the end of the year,” Gates said.

The secretary’s statement puts to rest media speculation that Petraeus would move to another four-star command.    » read more »

According to reports, Blackwater Worldwide released riot control gas on U.S. troops in 2005

January 11, 2008 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today sent the following letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, calling on him to respond to reports that Blackwater Worldwide allegedly dispersed CS gas, a riot control substance, in an intersection populated by U.S. military personnel and Iraqi civilians in 2005.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Jan. 10, 2008 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will soon consider a proposal to send more U.S. Marines into Afghanistan.

Press reports indicate that the Pentagon is proposing to send 3,000 Marines to help counter a possible spring offensive by the Taliban, but Gates said he has not yet received the proposal.

“I have asked a number of questions that I expect to be answered before I make up my mind,” the secretary said at a Jan. 10, Pentagon press conference.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12, 2007 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates will travel to Edinburgh, Scotland, for meetings with allies with troops in southern Afghanistan, defense officials said here today.

British Defense Minister Des Brown will host the meeting. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns will accompany Gates to the meeting. In addition to the United States and the United Kingdom, defense and foreign ministers from Australia, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada, Romania and Estonia are participating in the meeting.    » read more »

05 December 2007 -- A car bomb blast in central Baghdad has killed at least 15 people during a visit by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Despite the violence, Gates told reporters a secure and stable Iraq is within reach. He was making an unannounced visit to assess progress in security.

The car bomb in Baghdad's busy Karrada district also wounded more than 30 people.    » read more »

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1, 2007 – The Iraqi government and the coalition must follow up security successes in the country with economic development and reconstruction, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said here today.

Gates and Navy Adm. Michael G. Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also spoke about the Iraqi legislature during a Pentagon news conference.

Gates also urged Congress to quickly pass the fiscal 2008 appropriations bill, saying the Army would feel the pinch soonest if the bill is not forthcoming.    » read more »

MOSCOW, Oct. 11, 2007 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates arrived in Moscow tonight to join Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in meetings with top Russian leaders.

Gates left Washington yesterday evening, stopping first in London for several hours to meet with British Prime Gordon Brown and Secretary of State for Defense Desmond Brown. The U.S. and British leaders primarily addressed ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.    » read more »

07 October 2007 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he did not discuss possible locations for a new U.S. base in Latin America on any of the five stops he made in the region in recent days. The secretary made the remark during his final stop in Paramaribo, Suriname on Saturday.    » read more »

04 October 2007 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he wants to give the coalition military command in Iraq a larger role in coordinating the activity of private security contractors that operate in the country. He says that is among the suggestions from a five-member panel he sent to Iraq in the wake of the incident last month in which armed guards from the Blackwater company, protecting a U.S. diplomatic convoy in Baghdad, allegedly killed at least 11 Iraqi civilians in a shootout.    » read more »

02 October 2007 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he expects to order several steps to improve the supervision of security contractors working for the U.S. military in Iraq.

Secretary Gates said he read a report early Tuesday from a five-member team he sent to Iraq last week to assess the use and supervision of security contractors. The secretary ordered the review two weeks ago after contractors from the Blackwater security company working for the State Department were accused of killing at least 11 Iraqi civilians during a shootout in Baghdad.    » read more »

Asks for Answers from Pentagon on Blackwater; Obama bill would promote contractor accountability and transparency

September 20, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) sent the following letter to U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, calling on him to answer questions about the Blackwater incident and the role of private security contractors and the impact of their operations in Iraq.    » read more »

September 14, 2007 -- "It is fully to be expected that the administration would oppose this amendment.

The intention of the amendment is to rectify an inequity brought about by administration policies.

I had a personal discussion with Secretary Gates on Wednesday and modified the amendment to address his major concerns.

It is an appropriate area for Congress to act, and we stand by the amendment."

Source: Senator Harry Reid

16 September 2007 -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says American troops are likely to remain in Iraq for the long term, although their numbers will decline and their mission will change. Gates defended President Bush's war strategy during a series of interviews on American television.

President Bush has spoken of an enduring U.S. military presence in Iraq. Critics of the war say that means a conflict that rages for more than a decade, with significant American troop levels on the ground - perhaps 100,000 at any given time.    » read more »

09/12/2007, SANTA FE -- Governor Bill Richardson today sent a letter to Dr. Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense urging him to restart the Joint POW/MIA Accounting command to locate, recover and repatriate the remains of American servicemen in North Korea. The program was suspended the program in May 2005 by former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfield.    » read more »