He is making major spending cuts and reorganizing his department to save money, U. S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced on Monday.

He said that the cuts include reducing the amount spent on outside support contractors by 10 percent each of the next three years. Contracting duties will not be replaced through in-sourcing except in critical situations.

The leak of classified documents on the Afghan war could have "severe and dangerous" consequences for U. S. troops, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday.

The Washington Post has reported that Gates told reporters at a news conference in Washington the release could have serious diplomatic repercussions for Washington, saying it "may well damage our relationships and reputation in that key part of the world."

He said, "We have considerable repair work to do."

To ease off its "policy of threats and belligerence toward its neighbors," U. S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates called on North Korea on Friday.

Gates, during a meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young in Singapore, said the North needs to back off its use of threats to bully other nations.

Navy and Marine leaders need to take a fresh look at the branches' future roles and resource requirements, U. S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Monday.

For example, while the Defense Department currently plans to maintain 11 carrier strike groups through 2040, Navy leaders should question whether that strength level will be warranted in coming years, Gates said. Likewise, Marine Corps leaders should think about whether Marines will ever launch another major amphibious landing, he further added.

According to official reports, a U. S. Senate subcommittee Monday subpoenaed Attorney General Eric Holder and Defense Secretary Robert Gates to testify about the Fort Hood, Texas, shooting.

ABC News has reported that the subpoenas, to appear before the Senate Homeland Security Committee April 27, were issued by Chairman Joe Lieberman, Ind-Conn., and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, the ranking Republican on the committee.

It has been confirmed by defense Secretary Robert Gates that he cautioned the White House about U. S. policy on Iran's nuclear program but denied his advice had been "wake-up call."

The New York Times, citing government officials, reported in its Sunday editions that Gates issued the warning in January in a memo to Gen. James L. Jones, President Barack Obama's national security adviser.

As confirmed by the Pentagon press secretary on Thursday, Robert Gates, the US Defense Secretary, is planning on staying at his join more at least one more year, i. e., throughout 2010.

Mr. Gates is a high-profile veteran of former President George W. Bush's Republican Administration, and he agreed to continue with his services when Democratic President Barack Obama took the Oval Office last year. The length of his tenure, however, was not specified then.

"Secretary Gates met with the president just before Christmas (2009) and gave him a commitment to stay on the job for at least another year", said spokesman Geoff Morrell.

66 year old Mr. Gates and President Obama agreed to re-look and discuss the issue later i 2010.

Washington, Dec. 7 : US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has said that President Obama is sending extra troops to Afghanistan in order to bring the Taliban to the negotiation table, but clarified that America won’t negotiate with Taliban leaders in Pakistan, as “it’s up to the Pakistani military to deal with this problem.”

Washington, Dec. 4 : US Defence Secretary, Robert Gates has expressed fears about Al-Qaeda trying to ignite war between India and Pakistan in its bid to destabilise the latter and gain control of its nuclear arsenals, and pointed out that the outlawed outfit is helping Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) to plan attacks against India.

Addressing a hearing on President Obama’s revamped Afghan strategy at the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Gates said Al-Qaeda is supporting LeT against India in order to create further disturbances in the region.

Washington, Dec 2 : US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday the timeframe for beginning troop withdrawals from Afghanistan can be adjusted if more time is needed to stabilize the country.

Gates said in December 2010 the administration will review the new strategy outlined by President Barack Obama Tuesday night and determine whether the timeframe for starting a pullout in 18 months can be met.

Washington  - US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday in Washington that US plans to reduce and eventually withdraw troops from Iraq have not been changed amid uncertainty whether planned January 18 elections will be held as scheduled.

"We are continuing to proceed on the assumption that the drawdown will take place as General [Raymond] Odierno has described it," Gates said.

Seoul  - The danger posed by North Korea has grown as it develops its nuclear and missile programmes and engages in proliferation, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday on a visit to South Korea.

"The peril posed by the North Korean regime remains and, in many ways, has become even more lethal and destabilizing," Gates told South Korean and American soldiers in Seoul, according to the national Yonhap News Agency.

Tokyo  - US Defence Secretary Robert Gates on Wednesday told Japan's new government to quickly implement a 2006 agreement to relocate a US air base on Okinawa, or the United States would not withdraw Marines from the island to Guam, a news report said.

The relocation of the US Marine Corps' Futemma air base is the "linchpin" of a US troop realignment, Gates said in Tokyo after meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Toshimi Kitazawa, according to the Kyodo News agency.

Washington, Sep. 28 : U S Defense Secretary Robert Gates has claimed that Iran has every intention of developing nuclear weapons.

In an interview with ABC aired Sunday, Gates added that "the question of whether they have made a formal decision to move towards the development of nuclear weapons is in doubt."

Washington, Aug. 14 : U. S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said there is a possibility of an increased American military presence in Afghanistan, but warned that such a move would stretch military resources and could lead to a possible Afghan backlash.

Speaking to reporters in Washington, Gates painted a bleak portrait of the prospects for the US mission in Afghanistan.

Baghdad - US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates and the president of Iraq's Kurdish Autonomous Region, Massoud Barzani, discussed on Wednesday how the United States might help mediate disputes between Iraqi Kurds and Arabs over land and oil, a spokesman for Barzani said.

The two "discussed bilateral relations between the (Kurdish) region and Washington, in addition to the US role in solving pending issues between Baghdad and Arbil," Fouad Hussein, Barzani's chief of staff, told Baghdad's Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

Baghdad - US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates and the president of Iraq's Kurdish Autonomous Region, Massoud Barzani, discussed on Wednesday how the United States might help mediate disputes between Iraqi Kurds and Arabs over land and oil, a spokesman for Barzani said.

The two "discussed bilateral relations between the (Kurdish) region and Washington, in addition to the US role in solving pending issues between Baghdad and Arbil," Fouad Hussein, Barzani's chief of staff, told Baghdad's Aswat al-Iraq news agency.

Baghdad  - US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates arrived in Iraq on Tuesday on an unannounced visit, al-Jazeera news channel reported.

Gates arrived in Iraq after visits to Israel and Jordan.

This is the second visit by a US official to Iraq following the withdrawal of US troops from Iraqi cities on June 30. US Vice President Joe Biden celebrated US Independence Day, on July 4, with the US troops in Iraq.

New York, July 26 : US Defence Secretary Robert M. Gates will address Israel's growing anxiety over Iran's nuclear work during his meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak in Jerusalem on Monday.

A senior American official said the trip is part of a regular consultation and that Gates was not travelling to Israel "to roll out a map and do contingency planning for some strike on Iran."

Washington - US Defence Secretary Robert Gates announced plans Monday to temporarily increase the Army by 22,000 troops over the next three years.

The boost was needed because of the strain that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have placed on the military. The move would increase the current size of 547,000 active duty soldiers to 569,000.