BBC MONITORING INTERNATIONAL REPORTS: AFGHAN UZBEK COMMANDERS DOSTUM AND MALIK JOIN FORCES TO FIGHT TALEBAN (3/14)

BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom ; 20-Mar-2000 12:00:00 am ; 851 words

The former foreign affairs spokesman and deputy leader of the National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan, Uzbek Gen Abdol Malik, has told Iranian radio that he and the leader of the National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan, Uzbek Gen Abdorrashid Dostum, had agreed to set up a single alliance - the Coalition Council of Jonbesh-e Afghanistan. Gen Malik said he and a deputy would be responsible for military affairs and Gen Dostum and a deputy for the political affairs of the council. He added that the council would cooperate with the Northern Alliance's United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan to "clean the homeland". Gen Malik said the new council was "ready to support every peace process proposed by any Afghan". The following is the text of a report by Iranian radio from Mashhad on 14th March:

Dear listeners. As we told you earlier, at the beginning of our news bulletin, my colleague had a conversation with Gen [Abdol] Malik about the alliance between two flows: the Jonbesh-e Melli-e Eslami-e [Afghanistan] and the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan, which is ready for broadcast.

[Correspondent] Mr Gen Malik, we were told that after a long period of discord, the two flows, the

Jonbesh-e Melli-e Eslami-e Afghanistan and the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan, chaired by Gen [Abdorrashid] Dostum and Your Excellency [Gen Malik], reached a principle agreement to set up a single alliance. Can you, please, go into more detail on this for our listeners?

[Malik] On this, I would like to say that, naturally, taking into account our country and people's difficulties we have finally put an end to the discords and reached this agreement. We are confident that the whole country, people, homeland and the nation's interest should be put above all existing differences. We also decided that we, as two political organizations, must, under every condition, free our homeland together from the clutches of the aggressive Taleban and do our best in creating a peaceful atmosphere and mutual understanding between our brothers who have have differences with one another. We must also create an atmosphere of mutual understanding in order to promote people's peaceful life.

I would like, in this connection, to tell you that we reached an agreement consisting of 10 provisions. One of its provisions says that Gen Dostum will deal with military issues and I will deal with political issues and that at the same time I will hold the post of the leader of the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan and Mr Dostum will hold the post of the leader of the Jonbesh-e Milli-e Eslami-e Afghanistan.

We decided that each of us would have a deputy in the coalition and nominated Gen Gulmuhammad Pahlawan from the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan to deal with military issues and another person from Gen Dostum's

Jonbesh-e Melli-e Eslami-e Afghanistan to deal with political issues.

Another thing is that we have officially recognized Mr Gen Dostum as the leader of the Jonbesh-e Milli-e Eslami-e Afghanistan and as the senior military officer of the Shora-e Etelaf-e Jonbesh-e Afghanistan and in his turn, under provision nine of the protocol, Mr Dostum also recognizes me as the leader of the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan and as the senior political officer of the Shora-e Etelaf-e Jonbesh-e Afghanistan.

[Q] What is the aforementioned coalition's view on the United Islamic Front [for the Salvation of Afghanistan - UIFSA] and what position does it hold in this front.

[A] The Shora-e Etelaf-e Jonbesh-e Afghanistan is a member of the UIFSA. These two are military organization and the Shora-e Etelaf-e Jonbesh-e Afghanistan was formed from these two organizations. We are confident that we, along with the UIFSA, under the Defence Ministry and armed forces, will carry out joint operations aimed at cleaning our homeland and will put every hostility and rivalry aside in order to prevent further encroachment upon our homeland, nation and the people.

[Q] Mr Malik, we bear witness to the fact that several coalition parties were formed during the jihad and after the mojahedin's victory over the communist forces in Afghanistan, how much can this coalition and unity between these flows do in taking Afghanistan out of the current crisis situation.

[A] The people and political parties have gained enough experience. When the communist government collapsed its structures were not rooted out. They had their hands both inside and outside the country and these misunderstandings and foreign intervention brought Afghanistan to such a misfortune. Today, we believe that all political parties and all political figures must sit around the negotiation table and resolve the problems of their country and people. This is the best and wise way.

[Q] Don't you think that these steps have been a little bit delayed?

[A] It is right that these steps have been delayed. We still have enough time because our people are continuing to resist and are in their places. Although we lost part of our military potential - arms, guns, tanks and other things, which the Taleban seized and took away, we still have our people with us and we are confident that with God's help, with unity we will be able to free the northern areas first and then the whole of Afghanistan.

[Q] Mr Malik, peace sessions have been held in various places of the world in recent weeks, including in.

Cypres, in Jiddah in Saudi Arabia and in Rome. What do the Jonbesh-e Melli-e Eslami-e Afghanistan and the Jonbesh-e Eslami-e Afghanistan think about these sessions and about the work of the groups which are working for peace?

[A] The Shora-e Etelaf-e Jonbesh-e Afghanistan, which has been formed from two organizations, is ready to support every peace process proposed by any Afghan.

Source: Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mashhad, in Dari 1330 gmt 14 Mar 00