October 26, 2009 Kerry: Empowering, transferring responsibility to Afghans is 'the whole ball game' Play video

(NECN: Washington) - Massachusetts Senator John Kerry spoke this afternoon before The Council on Foreign Relations. The topic: Afghanistan.

"We all know why we invaded Afghanistan. It was not a mistake to go in," said Kerry.

"Because of the gross mishandling of this war by past civilian leadership, there are no great options for its handling today," said Kerry.

"The costs of failure are very real," said Kerry.

Kerry warns that a major U.S. Troop pullout could trigger civil war in Afghanistan, adding that a small-scale counterterror campaign is not an alternative to the broader military campaign under way.

But Kerry wouldn't endorse a major military increase as advocated by the commanding U.S. general in Afghanistan. Kerry says Gen. Stanley McChrystal's plan goes too far, too fast.

Kerry is just back from Afghanistan and Pakistan, where he helped persuade Afghan President Hamid Karzai to accept a presidential runoff vote.