WASHINGTON, Dec 11: Three months after the Sept 11 terrorist strikes on the United States, US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Tuesday US forces had yet to achieve their goals in Afghanistan.

“We have yet to achieve our very clear objectives,” Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon briefing, adding that US war aims were not limited to the capture of senior Taliban officials and leaders of Al-Qaeda.

He said the danger to US and other forces in Afghanistan was greater now than ever before as Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters were on the run, hiding in caves, mountains and cities.

“A wounded animal can be dangerous,” Rumsfeld said. “They can escape across borders and regroup then plot to strike again.”

In London US Secretary of State Colin Powell said Washington would consult its coalition partners before extending the campaign against “terrorism” beyond Afghanistan.

“Obviously we would consult with our coalition partners as we move forward,” he said at a London press conference hosted by British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

“That is a campaign that we are allied to,” he added.

Powell said that US President George W. Bush had not yet taken any decisions on the direction of “phase two” of the “war against terrorism” after the campaign in Afghanistan.

However, he emphasized that Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network had to be destroyed wherever it operated.

“We won’t be finished with our work until all of those cells are ripped up. We cannot rest until we have ripped up Al-Qaeda; every cell, wherever it is located around the world,” he said.

Since the Sept 11 attacks, there has been concern, especially among Middle Eastern countries, that the United States intends to launch strikes on other countries such as Iraq, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan, that it believes to be harbouring terrorists.—AFP