Gates unveils 'don't ask, don't tell' plan

[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/02/02/gates.mullen.gi.art.jpg caption="Defense Secretary Robert Gates (L) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen (R) participate in a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill on February 2, 2010."]

Washington (CNN) - The Pentagon has taken the first steps toward repealing the military's controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gay and lesbian service members, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday.

Laying the groundwork for a repeal of the policy will take more than a year, Gates said. In the interim, however, the Defense Department will start enforcing the policy "in a fairer manner," he told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

President Obama called for a repeal of the policy during last week's State of the Union address.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen also endorsed a repeal Tuesday, telling the committee it is his "personal belief" that "allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly [in the military] would be the right thing to do."

"For me, personally, it comes down to integrity," he said.

"The question before us is not whether the military prepares to make this change, but how we best prepare for it," Gates told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "We have received our orders from the commander in chief and we are moving out accordingly."

But the ultimate decision on whether to repeal the policy, he acknowledged, rests with Congress.

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