U.S. Central Command leader General David Petraeus acknowledged there are still significant challenges in both countries.

Former Secretary of State George Shultz introduced Petraeus, saying "We admire what you've done, we thank you for what you've done and are doing, and look forward eagerly for your comments." .

As head of Central Command, four star Army General David Petraeus is commander of all military operations in the Middle East, including Iraq.

Addressing that war, Petraeus said, "We are reducing our forces slowly but surely over time. We just completed the withdrawal of combat elements and bases from the city, something we've been doing for about 18 months, but certainly carried out a number of significant actions in recent months."

About Afghanistan, Petraeus said that will take much longer to control than Iraq. "It's going to take the extra forces that we're deploying, of course we're going from about 30,000, 31,000 at the beginning of the year to 68,000 by the end of the year, adding vastly more enablers, helicopters, logistics forces."

Prior to the speech, anti-war demonstrators tried to convince audience members that Petraeus is a war criminal.

Stephanie Tang of the group "World Can't Wait" said, "He's right now overseeing the escalation in Afghanistan where villagers are being massacred by unmanned planes from the sky. This is not a war on terror, this is a war of terror against the people of the Middle East."

Petraeus never addressed the protesters' allegations, but before his speech another general did. "Hey, isn't that great. We defend people, we defend their right to do that. So, God bless them, everybody has a right to an opinion. They have a different opinion. I wish they would come in and listen to this guy, and maybe they'd change their mind," said General Nick Tooliatos, U.S. Army Reserve.

Petraeus spoke inside the Marines' Memorial Theater, where his audience was almost all military. So he was truly preaching to the choir, a choir that appreciated his wit. "I asked my aide what we might do today that would give us a taste of San Francisco. And they came back with some great research and a whole list of activities. Quite a menu. A yoga class. An aromatherapy class. A conversational Mandarin class, or a building your own website seminar."

Petraeus said he settled for a run over the city's hilly terrain. And after the speech, he joined Secretary Shultz for dinner.