"But still we will do our best." The four-star general also announced a unilateral cease-fire on election day, saying Afghan forces will only be on the defensive to prevent violence.

VOA: standard.2009.08.16

"And while we will continue to do everything we can, we cannot be sure what the future will hold, but we are doing our absolute level best."

VOA: standard.2009.07.29

"It does not really matter because in the best case scenario we have today,we will still have a moderate virus that is projected to cause several million deaths extra deaths than the usual influenza annual mortality, which means that even in the best-case scenario, we do have an emergency on our hand,"

VOA: standard.2009.09.04