Chuck Hagel in Afghanistan (17 images)

Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, flies over Kabul, Afghanistan with his Senior Military Advisor, Lieutenant General Thomas Waldhauser, March 10, 2013. Hagel is traveling to Afghanistan on his first trip as the 24th Secretary of Defense to visit U.S. Troops, NATO leaders, and Afghan counterparts. UPI/Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo/DOD

Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, laughs with American service members while visiting the Kabul Military Training Center, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 10, 2013. Hagel is traveling to Afghanistan on his first trip as the 24th Secretary of Defense to visit U.S. Troops, NATO leaders, and Afghan counterparts. UPI/Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo/DOD

Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, is presented with a handmade Afghan rug with the logo of the Kabul Military Training Center by Afghan Brigadier General Aminullah Patyani, Commander, Kabul Military Training Center, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 10, 2013. Hagel is traveling to Afghanistan on his first trip as the 24th Secretary of Defense to visit U.S. Troops, NATO leaders, and Afghan counterparts. UPI/Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo/DOD

Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, presents a purple heart to a soldier in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, March 9, 2013. Hagel is traveling to Afghanistan on his first trip as the 24th Secretary of Defense to visit U.S. Troops, NATO leaders, and Afghan counterparts. UPI/Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo/DOD