Thirteen years ago this month, I arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, as the commander, Joint Task Force 160, charged with constructing and operating a detention facility to hold Taliban and al Qaeda detainees. Today the detention facility at Guantanamo is a blight on our history, and it should be closed.

I say this as one who helped to create it. I am not alone in my opinion. More than 50 retired generals and admirals have come forward saying Guantanamo should be closed. Statesmen, top national security officials, and public servants from across the political spectrum such as Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell, Hillary Clinton and Robert Gates, have said Guantanamo should be closed. President George W. Bush wanted to close the facility, and on his second day in office President Barack Obama signed an executive order committing his administration to closing Guantanamo.

Last year, his administration took steps—tentative but significant—toward that end. When President Obama took office, there were 242 detainees. At the beginning of 2014 there were 155. This year 28 detainees were transferred, leaving a population of 127. Of those remaining, 59 have been cleared for transfer. During 2014, the government conducted nine Periodic Review Board hearings to determine whether continued detention is necessary. That is real progress, but it hardly indicates the kind of urgency commensurate with the problem. Looking forward to the months ahead, I recommend that President Obama should transferall cleared detainees by the end of 2015.