After serving presidents Bush and Obama, Robert Gates is retiring at the end of the month.
Robert Gates is fighting his last battle. Few defence secretaries have been so widely praised as a wise and calm adviser. After serving both George W Bush and Barack Obama, he is now finishing up a farewell tour.
Whether saying goodbye to soldiers in Afghanistan, or Nato colleagues in Europe, his message is the same, and it is meant to be heard in the White House.
From Nato headquarters he said: "Having arrived in Brussels after my 12th and last visit to Afghanistan as secretary of defence, I shared my view that we are making substantial progress on the ground.
I also reiterated my belief that these gains could be threatened if we do not proceed with the transition to Afghan security lead in a deliberate, organised and co-ordinated manner.
"Even as the United States begins to draw down in the next month, I assured my fellow ministers there will be no rush to the exits on our part. And we expect the same from our allies."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13722359
Note: 9 June 2011 Last updated at 23:09 GMT