Obama defends U.S. counterterrorism strategy in Yemen

By Roberta Rampton NEW DELHI (Reuters) - President Barack Obama on Sunday defended his administration's drone-based counterterrorism strategy against al Qaeda militants in Yemen, saying the alternative would be to deploy U.S. troops, which was not sustainable. "It is not neat and it is not simple, but it is the best option that we have," Obama told reporters at a news conference in New Delhi. Four months ago, Obama hailed Yemen as a model for "successful" partnerships in the fight against Islamic militants. But last week, the country's U.S.-backed government collapsed, and Iran-backed Houthi rebels took over. Some U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday the United States has halted some counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda militants in Yemen following the takeover. However, other officials said the situation on the ground was fluid and described the halt as a temporary measure to assess chaotic conditions on the ground. Obama said the United States has not suspended its counterterrorism operations. "We continue to go after high-value targets inside of Yemen and we will continue to maintain the pressure which we require to keep the American people safe," he said. "What we have shown is that we can maintain the kind of pressure on these terrorist networks even in these kind of difficult environments," he said. White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said Islamic militants can thrive in areas where there is a political vacuum. "So that's why, when they grow in these dark places, we've got to make sure that we're developing the institutions, working with the Yemenis, so that we have security forces that can take the fight to AQAP and to others associated with them," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "So that's exactly what the strategy is designed to do." (Reporting by Frank Jack Daniel, Roberta Rampton and Krishna Das; Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu in Washington)