REP. MAC THORNBERRY: One last thing here. Vice President Biden has said that the Taliban is not our enemy. And I have a quote here that supports that. Do you agree, do you believe that the Taliban is our enemy in Afghanistan, and if they are not our enemy, can we leave a secure and stable Afghanistan without addressing the Taliban and their safe havens in Pakistan?
PANETTA: Our primary enemy in that part of the world is al Qaeda. The Taliban elements, the terrorist elements that support al Qaeda are also our enemy. And there are some elements of the Taliban that support al Qaeda, and those are the ones we have been targeting.
THORNBERRY: Can we leave a safe and secure Afghanistan without dealing with those elements of the Taliban who support al Qaida
PANETTA: I think our goal is to make sure they can never again can establish a safe haven in Afghanistan from which to conduct attacks on this country. And that remains our primary goal.