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Afghan neighbors join forces to tackle problems
Associated Press By DEB RIECHMANN 14/06/2012
KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghanistan and regional heavyweights agreed Thursday to work together to fight terrorism and drug-trafficking and pursue economic development — a formidable agenda in a neighborhood fraught with power struggles and rivalries.
Afghanistan Hosts second "Heart of Asia" Conference
TOLOnews.com Thursday, 14 June 2012
Afghanistan is hosting the second "Heart of Asia" conference at Kabul, which aims to strengthen regional cooperation in fighting terrorism and implementing commitment made at the Istanbul summit.
Southern Afghan Explosion Reportedly Kills One
By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan June 15, 2012
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- An explosion at a marketplace in southern Afghanistan has reportedly killed at least one person and wounded 10 others.
Haqqani network commander killed in E. Afghanistan: ISAF
KABUL, June 15 (Xinhua) -- A local commander with the Haqqani network was killed on Friday in an operation carried out by the Afghan forces and NATO-led coalition troops in eastern Afghan province of Paktika, the coalition said in a statement.
Afghanistan suspends political party sparking fears over freedom of speech
Solidarity Party's ban comes after it accused various Afghan leaders of war crimes and as western troops prepare to withdraw
Guardian.co.uk By Emma Graham-Harrison Thursday 14 June 2012
Kabul - Afghanistan has suspended a political party for the first time since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, a ban diplomats and activists say is a worrying sign freedoms in the country could suffer as western troops leave, taking funds and attention with them.
Haggling over Afghanistan
The Washington Post By Michael Krepon Opinion Friday, June 15, 2012
Michael Krepon is co-founder of the Stimson Center, a nonprofit nonpartisan policy institution, and is director of its South Asia program.
Germany Calls for More Chinese and Russian Aid in Afghanistan
Spiegel Online By Matthias Gebauer 14/06/2012
Many in the West feel that China and Russia should be contributing more to stability in Afghanistan. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle plans to demand more from Beijing and Moscow at a conference starting Thursday in Kabul. But he'll likely get little more than empty promises.
India’s presence in Afghan trilateral may send Pak into tizzy
The Economic Times By Indrani Bagchi 14 Jun, 2012
NEW DELHI - As India and US formally launch a trilateral dialogue with Afghanistan, red flags would be popping up all over Pakistan.
Afghans ditch opium for spice
CNN June 14th, 2012
Herat, Afghanistan - In several Afghan provinces the fight to curb the growing of opium poppies seems to be a losing battle.
Australia to train Afghan forces after withdrawal of combat forces
CNN By the CNN Wire Staff June 14, 2012
Australia pledged Thursday to provide troops and resources in Afghanistan beyond a 2014 deadline to withdraw combat forces, a commitment that came as NATO's chief vowed the alliance would not leave a security vacuum in the country.
The Best, and Worst, in Kabul Military Dining
New York Times By ANDREW SAND June 14, 2012
I’ve risked my life in Afghanistan for a plate of French cheese. While not as arduous as serving in rural Afghanistan, the prisonlike conditions on Kabul bases — no family, long hours, repetitive food and confined spaces — often drive service members to extremes to escape the pressure and keep up their spirits.
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Afghan neighbors join forces to tackle problems
Associated Press By DEB RIECHMANN 14/06/2012
KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghanistan and regional heavyweights agreed Thursday to work together to fight terrorism and drug-trafficking and pursue economic development — a formidable agenda in a neighborhood fraught with power struggles and rivalries.
The Afghan government played host to 14 other countries in the region, a peculiar role for a nation at war for more than three decades.
The issues they discussed were not new. What is new is that these countries agreed to work as a team to solve common problems. The hope is that regional cooperation will build confidence and erode decades of mistrust. And that, in turn, could help foster stability and greater prosperity.
"Afghanistan recognizes out of a grim experience of the past that it is only in stability and harmony and peace in this region that Afghanistan can prosper and be stable," President Hamid Karzai said in his opening remarks.
The conference, held under heavy security in Kabul, was a follow-up to the first "Heart of Asia" meeting held in November in Istanbul.
Both sessions took place after the U.S.-led NATO coalition decided to end its combat mission in Afghanistan by the close of 2014. While that deadline likely hastened work to foster more regional cooperation, the meetings are more of a recognition that an unstable Afghanistan threatens the entire region.
"Whatever happens in Afghanistan affects us in one way or another," said Ahmet Davutoglu, foreign minister of Turkey and co-chairman of the event.
"In order to build confidence, one needs to commit to working together, to leave past negative memories behind and positively reconstruct future expectations."
The 15 nations that participated in the conference were: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. Representatives of 15 other countries, most of them Western, and a dozen regional and international organizations also attended.
Rivalries abound.
Pakistan and India, for instance, have fought three major wars since the two were carved out of British India in 1947. India and Afghanistan recently signed a strategic partnership agreement, adding to concerns in Islamabad that New Delhi was increasing its influence on Pakistan's western flank. Iran feels threatened by any long-term presence of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and rivals Saudi Arabia for domination of the Persian Gulf.
Enhanced cooperation could also stall over an inability to find a political resolution to the Afghan war.
The Taliban have been willing to hold discussions with the United States but have rejected talks with the Afghan government — though Karzai insists that Taliban leaders have spoken with his government in private. The Taliban have announced their intent to open an office in Qatar. Karzai has backed that plan, but has been pushing Saudi Arabia as a venue for any possible talks.
Karzai announced at the conference that Salahuddin Rabbani, the head of the high peace council, would visit Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in the near future. Rabbani is the son of former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was killed in September 2011 by a suicide bomber posing as a peace emissary from the Taliban.
At the Istanbul conference, the nations identified more than 40 steps that could be taken to build confidence in the region. On Thursday, they agreed to:
—Improve the exchange of information about commercial opportunities and trade conditions; enhance cooperation among chambers of commerce; and develop a strategy to develop interconnecting infrastructure across the region — with support from international partners.
—Broaden cooperation and exchanges in the fields of education and science.
—Develop joint plans for disaster management.
—Counter the production, trafficking and consumption of opium, other narcotic drugs.
—Work together to fight terrorism.
The conference communique states that terrorism and violent extremism must be addressed in all their forms, "including the dismantling of terrorist sanctuaries and safe havens, as well as disrupting all financial and tactical support for terrorism."
This issue is aimed at Iran and Pakistan, which have been accused of not doing enough to counter militancy, or secretly facilitating it.
Iran has denied allegations that it provides financial support to militants.
Pakistan also bristles at allegations that it gives sanctuary to insurgents who attack Afghan and foreign forces across the border.
"If I believe that my future prosperity is linked with Afghans, then how can someone who is harming Afghanistan not be harming me?" Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar asked reporters, rhetorically, at a news conference after the conference.
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi expressed support for regional cooperation, especially on drug-trafficking, but used his speech to criticize the U.S.-led military coalition. He said the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan has worsened security and led to a surge in narcotic drug production and trafficking.
The Iranian said "a particular country" intends to prolong its military presence in Afghanistan in "pursuit of its extra-regional objectives." It was clear that he was referring to the United States, which plans to keep some troops in Afghanistan after 2014 to train Afghan forces and battle terrorism.
In the spirit of cooperation, however, Iran agreed to lead the education initiative — and the United States and Australia signed up to work on that issue too.
Kazakhstan has agreed to host the group's third meeting in the first half of next year in Astana.
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Afghanistan Hosts second "Heart of Asia" Conference
TOLOnews.com Thursday, 14 June 2012
Afghanistan is hosting the second "Heart of Asia" conference at Kabul, which aims to strengthen regional cooperation in fighting terrorism and implementing commitment made at the Istanbul summit.
The conference was officially opened today by Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai, who said that attending countries have a major role to play in bringing stability to Afghanistan.
In a reference to Pakistan and Iran, Karzai stressed that Afghan partnership agreements with foreign nations would not undermine relations with neighboring countries but would only strengthen such ties.
Karzai said that Iran had helped Afghanistan for many years, and said his country "desires this cooperative brotherly relationship to continue."
The president added that the western countries - particularly the United States - should recognize that Afghanistan had to live in peace and prosperity with other nations in the region.
Foreign Ministers from Pakistan, Iran, India, Russia, the US, as well as representatives from international organizations including the United Nations, are attending the conference, which is being held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Compound.
UN secretary-general Ban-Ki Moon told conference delegates by video link that countries in the "Heart of Asia" region face many challenges. "Clearly Afghanistan and its neighbors have common threats, but you have made real progress on the road to security and development," said Mr Ban.
He added said that particular attention should be paid to improving the situation of vulnerable people in the region.
"As I said at the Nato summit in Chicago, let us make our special effort to the women and children - including girls education and women's participation in the country's political life."
Also during the conference today:
• Turkey pledged that it would continue its efforts to contribute to stability in Afghanistan.
• Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said international forces in Afghanistan should tackle the fight against narcotics more seriously
• Pakistan's foreign minister Hinna Rabbani Khar said Pakistan was optimistic that "Heart of Asia" nations would be able to make progress towards a peaceful Afghanistan and a secure region. "For Pakistan's part, I can assure you of our full commitments to these objectives," she said
• Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi said that Afghanistan's agreements with western countries was problematic. He said such agreements, and attempts to formalize the presence of foreign military bases in Afghanistan, were contrary to the efforts of regional players to find peaceful solutions to the Afghanistan's problems, and risked making Afghanistan the center of "security rivalries."
• Chinese foreign minister Fu Ying said Afghanistan needed international support for the economic growth - but as well as economic support, efforts had to be made to develop Afghanistan's own ability to generate growth."
• British foreign minister William Hague reaffirmed his nation's commitment to Afghanistan. "My country, along with Nato and ISAF allies, has played a significant role in Afghanistan in recent years, and we will be reliable friend in the future," said Hague. He added that Britain would respect the sovereignty of Afghanistan following the withdrawal of UK forces in 2014.
• US deputy secretary of state William Burns expressed his country's gratitude to Afghanistan's neighbors and near neighbors, saying their investment in Afghan security forces, which he said was "indispensible to further stability in the region."
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Southern Afghan Explosion Reportedly Kills One
By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan June 15, 2012
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- An explosion at a marketplace in southern Afghanistan has reportedly killed at least one person and wounded 10 others.
A spokesman for the Kandahar governor's office, Jawid Faisal, said the blast occurred on June 15 in the remote southeastern Maroof district of Kandahar Province.
Faisal said it appeared the casualties were caused when an explosive device attached to a motorcycle was detonated.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the explosion.
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Haqqani network commander killed in E. Afghanistan: ISAF
KABUL, June 15 (Xinhua) -- A local commander with the Haqqani network was killed on Friday in an operation carried out by the Afghan forces and NATO-led coalition troops in eastern Afghan province of Paktika, the coalition said in a statement.
"An Afghan and coalition security force killed Haqqani commander Eid Mohammad and multiple insurgents during an operation in Sharan district, Paktika province, today," the NATO-led coalition or International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said in the statement.
A Taliban-affiliated group of militants, the Haqqani network mostly operates in eastern Afghan provinces and capital Kabul, has been responsible for many high-profile attacks including suicide bombings and Improvised Explosive Device (IED) against security forces.
"Eid Mohammed coordinated and personally conducted attacks against coalition and Afghan forces while also providing weapons to Haqqani fighters throughout the region,"
"As Afghan and coalition troops approached Eid Mohammed's location, the Haqqani commander and armed insurgents maneuvered to attack them. The security force engaged and killed Eid Mohammad and multiple insurgents," the statement said without disclosing the exact number of the killed insurgents.
No civilians were harmed in the exchange, the ISAF statement added.
Militancy has been on constant rise since the Taliban launched its spring offensive on May 3 this year.
Afghan forces and some 130,000 NATO-led coalition troops have intensified cleanup operations against Taliban and other militants throughout the country recently but the insurgents in retaliation responded by carrying out suicide attacks and roadside bombings.
A suicide bomber was shot and killed by Afghan army soldiers in eastern Wardak province on Thursday, a provincial government spokesman said.
"A man wearing a suicide vest intended to target an army installation in Sayyed Abad district Thursday afternoon but the army soldiers recognized the attacker and shot him before detonating his explosive," spokesman Shahidullah Shahid told Xinhua on Friday, adding the suicide vest, two hand grenade and a gun was discovered and no army soldier was injured in the incident.
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Afghanistan suspends political party sparking fears over freedom of speech
Solidarity Party's ban comes after it accused various Afghan leaders of war crimes and as western troops prepare to withdraw
Guardian.co.uk By Emma Graham-Harrison Thursday 14 June 2012
Kabul - Afghanistan has suspended a political party for the first time since the fall of the Taliban in 2001, a ban diplomats and activists say is a worrying sign freedoms in the country could suffer as western troops leave, taking funds and attention with them.
The Solidarity Party angered powerful politicians with a demonstration in late April accusing a swathe of Afghan leaders, former leaders and commanders of committing war crimes over the last three decades of conflict, and demanding they be brought to justice.
A small left-wing organisation, it barely registers as a force in a national political life dominated by patronage networks and heavyweight power brokers; it boycotted the last two elections to the lower house of parliament and has just one senator in the upper house. But its suspension sends a chilling message about shrinking government tolerance for dissent.
"It's worrying that a political party has been suspended. If this is the start of a trend, it would give rise to great concern," said one senior western diplomat, who asked not to be named.
Freedom of speech and association have been one of the country's human rights success stories since 2001, so seeing them under attack is particularly disturbing, said Heather Barr, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch.
"This is the first time the Afghan government has attacked a political party simply for expressing views," Barr said.
"As the international community heads for the exits in Afghanistan, the suspension of the Solidarity Party is one of a number of worrying signs that the space for free speech in Afghanistan may be starting to close. A crackdown on free speech would be a disaster for human rights in a country where rights are already in great peril."
The party courted controversy with the march by holding it on a national holiday commemorating the victory of mujahideen fighters over Soviet troops, and burning pictures in the street of the men they consider war criminals.
They named leaders from all sides of the conflicts that have raged since the late 1970s, some of whom are heroes in part of Afghanistan, or still in government or positions of power.
"[We] demand the prosecution of the criminal leaders," the group said in a statement issued on the day of the march. "Our party is committed to breaking the atmosphere of fear and dread."
In early May, the party was summoned by the upper house of parliament to answer questions about the protest, said Hafiz Rasiq, organiser and member of the leadership.
And then in early June, they received a letter informing it that, at the request of a Senate committee, its activities had been suspended to allow the attorney general to investigate the demonstration.
The letter said the party had "violated article 59 of the constitution", which stipulates that no one can misuse their rights and freedoms to damage national sovereignty or unity.
The Solidarity Party counter that they respect honest commanders and politicians, but were giving voice to the legitimate wishes of many Afghans to see people face prosecution for bringing death, poverty and misery to their families.
"The aim of our party is peace, democracy and social justice," said Rasiq.
"The martyrs who were killed during the jihad times, many of their families still live in very impoverished conditions, their sons are just selling fruit, or washing cars, while those who try to use the name of jihad have huge fortunes, dozens of bullet-proof cars."
The ban comes shortly after the committee to protect journalists warned that several Afghan media organisations could face criminal charges over their reporting on an alleged bribery scandal, and said the profession was under "political and economic pressure".
"There is cause for unease for the future of Afghan's media, as for much else in Afghanistan as NATO forces prepare for withdrawal," wrote Asia programme coordinator Bob Dietz in a blog.
Outlets, including the respected Pajhwok news agency, have been referred by the government's Media Monitoring Commission to the attorney general's office, he added.
Barr, from Human Rights Watch, said that researchers have also said their access to government figures and information has been curbed.
"There have been a growing number of worrying incidents of the government maligning or even seeking to prosecute journalists, blocking access to information, and obstructing reporting and research," she said. "None of this bodes well for human rights in Afghanistan post-2014."
The Solidarity Party is gearing up for a fight. It hopes the suspension will be overturned once the investigation is complete, but if not members say they are preparing to continue with political activities despite the possible consequences.
It has had strong support from Afghan civil society, Rasiq said, and hopes for more political support from the international community on a case that analysts say has far-reaching implications.
Thomas Ruttig, a director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, said: "How this case will be handled by the Afghan authorities will show how much the rule of law in Afghanistan has evolved where, according to President Karzai's speech at the NATO summit in Chicago, the 'foundations of a vibrant democracy' have already been laid."
Additional reporting by Mokhtar Amiri
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Haggling over Afghanistan
The Washington Post By Michael Krepon Opinion Friday, June 15, 2012
Michael Krepon is co-founder of the Stimson Center, a nonprofit nonpartisan policy institution, and is director of its South Asia program.
Afghanistan’s future matters much more to Pakistan than to the United States. This elemental truth is forgotten in U.S. deliberations about how best to leverage Pakistan to achieve a political settlement in Afghanistan. Pakistani military and intelligence services have demonstrated that they are willing to risk ties with Washington to achieve a friendly government on their western border — a government that most Afghans and Washington would oppose. This is the central roadblock to U.S.-Pakistani relations and to a stable Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s leaders will continue to seek U.S. assistance even as they tirelessly pursue a government in Kabul that, after most U.S. troops withdraw in 2014, will be friendlier to them than to India. If the Pakistanis fail to ensure this negotiated outcome, they will employ allies to upend an Afghan government that they deem unfriendly.
Pakistani resolve is rooted in the assumption that, if India gains a strong foothold in Afghanistan, then Pakistan’s largest and most resource-rich province, Baluchistan, would be ripe for an India-supported insurgency. Pakistan’s military knows how this game is played — it played it in the Indian state of Jammu and in Kashmir for more than a decade after Soviet troops left Afghanistan in 1989. Baluchistan is as disaffected today as the Kashmir Valley was then.
Pakistani distrust is heightened by events of four decades ago: India severed East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) from West Pakistan in their 1971 war. Pakistani leaders will not abide another territorial loss or an extended, foreign-backed insurgency, not when they are feeling so vulnerable. Pakistan has suffered the second-highest number of mass-casualty attacks — behind only Iraq — over the past five years. Pakistan’s military and intelligence services firmly believe that sooner or later, New Delhi will be unable to resist the temptation to dismember their country again. In fact, Pakistan’s dissolution would jeopardize Indian growth and security. And Pakistan’s nuclear capabilities have frozen a territorial status quo, which serves Indian interests. The prospect of a clash would be raised only if spectacular acts of terrorism originate from Pakistan.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, the United States and Pakistan have maintained a strained, transactional partnership. When faced with the George W. Bush administration’s ultimatum — Are you with us or against us? — Gen. Pervez Musharraf, then Pakistan’s chief executive, agreed to a limited U.S. presence at air bases, restricted use of Pakistani airspace and a logistical supply corridor for U.S. troops. Pakistani agents were instrumental in capturing al-Qaeda leaders, including Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed in March 2003. Pakistan was allocated U.S. military and economic assistance, although far less than its bill for services rendered.
Today, it is fashionable in Pakistan to blame Musharraf for giving away the store to the Americans. But refusing to cooperate would have ensured a much closer partnership between Washington and New Delhi and an embarrassing disregard for Pakistani sovereignty by U.S. forces. Ironically, Pakistani efforts to secure a friendly government in Afghanistan have produced the scenario Musharraf sought to avoid.
What’s more, Musharraf’s promises to the Bush administration were highly qualified, even at the outset. Pakistani military and intelligence services, based in Rawalpindi, provided havens for Afghan Taliban leaders and for proxies operating across the poorly demarcated border. The longer Pakistanis protected those who would presumably serve their interests in a future Afghan government, the more drone strikes Washington authorized on their havens. These strikes will ultimately fail to influence the outcome of an Afghan settlement — but they have already succeeded in making the United States more hated in Pakistan than India.
Tensions were inflamed by the May 2011 raid that killed Osama bin Laden and the NATO attack on a Pakistani border post that killed 24 Pakistani troops in November. Now the United States and Pakistan are again haggling — over the price of hauling freight and the wording of an apology for the November incident. This time, however, more Pakistanis and Americans are reaching the same conclusion: that it is not worth the effort, money or subterfuge required to patch up relations.
While Pakistan’s policies have remained consistent, U.S. policies are becoming more incoherent. President Obama invited President Asif Ali Zardari to the recent NATO summit in Chicago, then declined to meet privately with him before publicly declaring, “We think that Pakistan has to be part of the solution in Afghanistan.” U.S. policy seeks a mutually agreeable political settlement in Afghanistan, but there is no sense haggling over price if the government that Pakistanis want to see in Kabul is unacceptable to most Afghans and the other external stakeholders of Afghanistan.
Pakistan has a poor track record of controlling its proxies in Afghanistan, but its proxies are considered better than the alternatives. Pakistani military and intelligence services are holding a losing hand that they cannot lay down, while Washington’s cards grow weaker with time.
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Germany Calls for More Chinese and Russian Aid in Afghanistan
Spiegel Online By Matthias Gebauer 14/06/2012
Many in the West feel that China and Russia should be contributing more to stability in Afghanistan. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle plans to demand more from Beijing and Moscow at a conference starting Thursday in Kabul. But he'll likely get little more than empty promises.
The issue is Afghanistan's future -- and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle has clear ideas about who should lend a hand in its reconstruction. Shortly before arriving at a regional conference in Kabul on Thursday morning, Westerwelle called for greater Russian and Chinese involvement in the Hindu Kush.
Westerwelle will join the foreign ministers of about 15 neighboring states as well as other partner nations at the international meeting. There, they will discuss support for Afghanistan, both now and after the planned withdrawal of NATO troops in 2014.
For the first time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is also at the table, as is a deputy Chinese foreign minister. Neighboring Pakistan and Iran are also represented, and Saudi Arabia has sent an official delegate.
For some time now, Westerwelle has been trying to get China, in particular, to assume a greater role in rebuilding Afghanistan and financially supporting its military after the NATO withdrawal for a period of time.
"It's good that China and Russia will be there," Westerwelle told SPIEGEL ONLINE on the flight to Kabul.
Westerwelle believes both countries have an interest in Afghanistan's stability and that they "should also assume some responsibility for that." In Kabul, he also hopes to meet privately with his Russian counterpart, Lavrov.
Promoting Cooperation
Westerwelle left Berlin Wednesday evening shortly after Germany's soccer team defeated the Netherlands 2:1 in their group-stage match of the 2012 European Football Championship. From neighboring Uzbekistan, he then took a military plane to Kabul, where he arrived Thursday morning. For security reasons, Westerwelle's trip and attendance at the conference had been kept secret in advance.
Westerwelle will be joined at the meeting by British Foreign Secretary William Hague and US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns. For the German government, strengthening regional collaboration is key to stability in Afghanistan and the entire region, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said before arriving in Kabul.
Still, cooperation among Afghanistan's neighbors is not easy. Pakistan and Iran usually pursue only their own interests, and Afghanistan has been the historical stomping ground for their power struggles and proxy wars. Likewise, it is considered an open secret that Pakistan's ISI intelligence agency has continued to support the Taliban in Afghanistan in order to safeguard Pakistani claims to power in the country -- the so-called "strategic depth" -- after the NATO withdrawal. It is equally clear that senior insurgency leaders continue to operate relatively undisturbed in Quetta and other parts of Pakistan.
Focus on China and Russia
The calls on Russia and China provide evidence of a certain degree of frustration among NATO countries. For several years now, the Chinese have been doing excellent business in Afghanistan, whether with their major road-building projects or mining for raw materials, such as copper and so-called rare earths. However, Beijing has continued to show little interest in helping Western nations rebuild Afghanistan or train local security forces.
At the NATO summit held in Chicago in May, there were calls for China -- as a beneficiary of the gradually stabilizing situation in Afghanistan -- to contribute to a fund to pay the local army and police for some time after 2014.
The conference in Kabul, which is taking place under heavy security, is not expected to produce any concrete results on these or other issues. Instead, the foreign ministers and delegates are more focused on agreeing to so-called confidence-building measures between Afghanistan and its neighbors and regional partners, such as the establishment of bilateral chambers of commerce. For its part, Iran -- which the West views as one of Afghanistan's most difficult neighbors -- wants to launch an education project in the country. But it's unlike that the conference will produce more than declarations of intent.
In the Shadow of Syria
The meeting will be overshadowed by the escalating conflict in Syria. Westerwelle and his Western colleagues want to use the opportunity in Kabul to appeal to their Russian counterpart, Lavrov. He has reportedly eased his strong opposition to further sanctions against the regime of President Bashar Assad. Lavrov also recently proposed holding a conference on Syria in Moscow, and he might offer the first details about it during the meeting in Kabul.
Westerwelle also wants to discuss the situation in Syria with Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi, as Iran is considered one of the last remaining supporters of the beleaguered Assad regime.
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India’s presence in Afghan trilateral may send Pak into tizzy
The Economic Times By Indrani Bagchi 14 Jun, 2012
NEW DELHI - As India and US formally launch a trilateral dialogue with Afghanistan, red flags would be popping up all over Pakistan.
As a sign of the degree of worsening of ties between the US and Pakistan, the announcement of the new trilateral during the US-India strategic dialogue in Washington is also a pointer to some of deft diplomatic moves that New Delhi will have to undertake in the coming years.
"Today we agreed to move forward with a formal trilateral consultation among our three nations (India, US and Afghanistan," announced US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton. It comes at a time when US defence secretary Leon Panetta has recommended to the US Congress that they should put conditions on the release of the $3.5 billion aid to Pakistan, basing them on "what we expect them to do".
Later, in a joint statement, the US and India said, "They intend to explore opportunities to work together to promote Afghanistan's development, including in areas such as mining, agriculture, energy, capacity building and infrastructure." India will be hosting an international investor's meet on Afghanistan in New Delhi soon.
"We very much appreciate India's commitment to help build a better future for the Afghan people: helping them with more than $ 2 billion for development; supporting the New Silk Road Initiative; hosting the investment conference; providing security, training and support," Clinton told journalists.
The US and India have been consulting on Afghanistan for some time now, their positions converging significantly. It's a far cry from the times when the US would ask India to lower its profile in Afghanistan, even looking askance at India's consulates, which had become a paranoid agenda item with the Pakistanis.
India's repeated red-flagging of attempts to reconcile the "good Taliban" was another instance of how far the US and India were on Afghanistan. Pakistan was the US' Plan A because Washington insisted that Islamabad was indispensable to a solution in Afghanistan.
That was before Osama bin Laden and overwhelming evidence of Pakistan's ISI and the Haqqani network going after Indian and US interests in Afghanistan, including attacks on embassies.
It was before the US acknowledged what everybody knew: Pakistan shelters the Taliban, wants to control the reconciliation process with the Taliban and was openly undermining the Nato operations in Afghanistan.
Afghan president Hamid Karzai travelled a similar route. He invited Pakistani Army and ISI chiefs to take a more active role in the ultimate resolution in Afghanistan. But this went sour after the assassination of Burhanuddin Rabbani, which was traced to the Taliban with help from Pakistan.
A spooked Karzai, who is fighting for his survival, signed the first strategic partnership agreement with India. The US and Germany followed. But equally significantly, Karzai joined the chorus against Pakistan's "safe havens", effectively aligning himself against Pakistan.
For the past seven months Pakistan has played its trump card against the US - by closing down the NATO supply routes, forcing Washington to make a greater use of the Northern Distribution Network to supply its forces in Afghanistan. Panetta disclosed this week that it was adding $100 million a month to the war bill.
But the network has grown. The US and Russia are in the process of signing an agreement that will facilitate the removal of equipment from Afghanistan after 2014. Pakistan is now insisting on an apology for the deaths of 24 of its soldiers in a NATO strike last November.
The US has offered "regret", but no apology. In fact, the US ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Hunter, will be leaving his job, primarily because his position on the apology differed wildly from Washington.
However, sources here are clear that India will not increase its security footprint in Afghanistan and expects Kabul to protect its own interest and installations. "We will train Afghans in India, but we are not sending troops to Afghanistan," said sources.
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Afghans ditch opium for spice
CNN June 14th, 2012
Herat, Afghanistan - In several Afghan provinces the fight to curb the growing of opium poppies seems to be a losing battle.
In 2011 a United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime survey said opium poppy cultivation rose by 7% overall from the prior year. Opium poppy has been one of the main sources of funding for the Taliban especially since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Poppy cultivation is expected to grow partly because the opium poppy's prices are rising and because farmers are having a hard time deriving as much profit from alternative crops.
But one Afghan province is showing real progress in doing just that. The alternative crop is the world's most expensive spice, saffron.
Farmers in Herat, Western Afghanistan, say not only does saffron fetch more profit than poppy but they have also found an enticing way to market it. It is packaged in beautiful little tins or what look like perfume bottles. The farmers are hoping the government will do even more to help Afghan saffron become a known commodity worldwide.
Herat is an ancient city marked by a towering mosque, a distinct Iranian influence, bustling markets and an improving economy. What is happening in Herat province, the government says, is a good argument for a spice revolution: replacing opium poppy crops.
"Herat province has been cleaned of 99% of its poppy cultivation," Basheer Ahmad Ahmadi, the Head of Agricultural affairs in the Herat province's agricultural department, told CNN. "The 1% is in places with some security problems. The government, cooperation of NGOs, some donations and USAID has played an important role to help and encourage saffron cultivation."
But for farmers like Hajji Ibrahim Aadil, it's not just as simple as deciding to switch. After changing his crop from poppy to saffron he says he had unwanted visitors.
"Taliban took money from me," Aadil told CNN. "I walked for days with my eyes wrapped with a piece of cloth. I was kept in a well for two days. Finally, they told me to stop promoting the cultivation of saffron."
Instead, he and his 13 family members moved, and now freely grow and sell saffron, which he says brings in more profit than poppy ever did. Enough to buy a large home in a safe and relatively peaceful environment, where his young daughters are going to school.
"I always wanted my girls to be educated," Aadil said.
The Afghan government, along with NATO members, has been trying to stem the growth of the opium poppy. Still, 90 % of the world's opium is produced in Afghanistan and it brought in an estimated $1.4 billion last year. Much of that ended up with Taliban and government-linked warlords.
Saffron, which is used in food and can be used as a dye, is being looked at as a potential gold mine in Herat. It is a far easier crop to plant and harvest than opium poppy, and it aligns with the tenets of Islam and gives new opportunities for Afghan women.
Pari Gul Danish Yaar sits at a table with a large pile of saffron in front of her. She is carefully eyeing each strand as she takes her tweezers and picks out the unwanted pieces.
"Even a small mistake shouldn't be made," she said. "I take the useless things out in the best possible way. It is used for important purposes like eating and it is necessary to wash your hands with soap before handling it."
She is happy doing this delicate work because she says she wouldn't have a job if it weren't for saffron cultivation. Working with poppy was forbidden in her household.
"Neither my family would allow me and nor would I participate in it," she said. "I am very happy with this work because it is very useful for Afghanistan and other countries. This is a legal work."
Dozens of companies have been formed, with the aim of exporting Afghan saffron abroad. In one store with mirrored walls the packaging gives you a sense that whatever is inside must be something special. The glittering shop has what looks like perfume bottles in different shapes and sizes and small decorated tins. Inside are strands of saffron. Cooks know you only need a few strands of the expensive spice to make a meal mouth watering.
But Saffron's success here isn't without pitfalls.
"There were times that we couldn't export our saffron to other countries," Aadil said. "The government of Afghanistan should help out with this. We don't have any department that can standardize and market our saffron so that our saffron could be sold to other countries, like Iran, Spain and other foreign countries."
And since the government and some NGOs are handing out so many saffron bulbs to encourage farmers such as Aadil, there is the potential for flooding the market and bringing the price of this precious spice down. In a country still suffering from decades of war, there is also the issue of quality control, and farmers say they need more and better processing and packaging plants.
It is something Ahmadi says is being worked out. "We are having processing and packing problems but I assure you that we will overcome these problems in the next two years," he said. "The main problem that we have is issuing certificate. Now we have three saffron laboratories in Herat agricultural department where we can do three kinds of tests: color, smell and taste."
Afghans like farmer Aadil hope the obstacles farmers face will disappear as they eye the world markets where the deep red spice can fetch thousands of dollars per pound.
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Australia to train Afghan forces after withdrawal of combat forces
CNN By the CNN Wire Staff June 14, 2012
Australia pledged Thursday to provide troops and resources in Afghanistan beyond a 2014 deadline to withdraw combat forces, a commitment that came as NATO's chief vowed the alliance would not leave a security vacuum in the country.
The announcement followed news of a joint political declaration between Australia and NATO during a news conference in the Australian capital of Canberra.
The agreement unites Australia and NATO in battling terrorism, piracy and cyber crimes, though the primary focus in the near term will be on Afghan security forces.
"Afghanistan will be a central to our focus for our partnership for some time to come," Prime Minister Julia Gillard said.
Australia will provide troops to train Afghan security forces as well as resources to the country, she said without spelling out specifics.
NATO plans to remove its final combat troops and hand over full security responsibility to Afghanistan at the end of 2014. The Afghan government is set to have about 350,000 of its own security forces in place then - with a yet undetermined number of international forces left behind to train them.
Rasmussen has said some NATO members have agreed to contribute money for the $4 billion a year needed to help fund Afghan security forces.
"We will not abandon Afghanistan, we will not leave behind a security vacuum," Rasmussen told reporters Wednesday in Australia.
It was unclear whether Australia's commitment of troops and resources would also include money to fund Afghan forces.
"We will make sure we will maintain the gains we have achieved in blood and resources," Rasmussen said.
Many have questioned whether Afghanistan's forces will be able to independently take responsibility for the country's security by the end of 2014.
France has said it plans to withdraw its troops by the end of 2012, and the United States is pulling at least 30,000 of its troops by the end of the year.
Gillard has previously said Australia will accelerate the withdrawal of its roughly 1,500 combat troops, citing security improvements.
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The Best, and Worst, in Kabul Military Dining
New York Times By ANDREW SAND June 14, 2012
I’ve risked my life in Afghanistan for a plate of French cheese. While not as arduous as serving in rural Afghanistan, the prisonlike conditions on Kabul bases — no family, long hours, repetitive food and confined spaces — often drive service members to extremes to escape the pressure and keep up their spirits.
Consider the “Kabul DFAC Tour.” Inspired by the food tours back home, some service members use official business to sample different military dining facilities around the city. And if there is extra room in the convoy, they bring along their friends for additional security and dining company.
In one instance, during a mid-April trip, Taliban attacks stranded a coalition team overnight at a French base, Camp Warehouse. Within a week of safely returning home, the same team ventured back to Camp Warehouse. Even the Taliban could not keep them from their mission, and a good meal.
In this way, regardless of where you are based, you can try the best and worst DFACs, or dining facilities, in Kabul. Here’s how they break down — with my own little rating system. Bon appétit!
Camp Warehouse DFAC
The premier military dining facility in Kabul. Dashing Frenchmen sport oversize berets. A 30-foot replica of the Eiffel Tower looms over plates of creamy Camembert and smoky Gouda. French chefs serve up authentic French fries, crisp and hot. And fresh sole with a lemon cream sauce in a landlocked country — how did they do that? At this quaint French base, meals end sweetly, with rare deployment joy found in the delicate bûche de Noël. All in all, an exquisite dining experience that brings a bit of Paris to Kabul.
Camp Souter DFAC
The Camp Souter DFAC proves that not all British food is bad. Notable for its wide selection, each meal features a tip-top spread fit for the queen – fluffy omelets, rich curries, seasoned roasts, roasted potatoes and sinful chocolate tarts. After dining, step next door to the cafe and catch a lively Premier League match with some boisterous British lads. Just don’t call it soccer. Over all, a brilliant establishment.
ISAF Headquarters DFAC
Planning military strategy? Drafting government policy? Or just want to be close to important people? Then visit the Supreme ISAF Headquarters Dining Facility, the “Power DFAC” of Kabul. Spacious and luxuriously decorated with imitation stained-glass panels and ceramic tiling, this DFAC serves as the ideal setting for conducting official business. Visitors can view a who’s who of coalition decision makers while feasting on grilled salmon, freshly cooked pasta, flavorful soups and delectable puddings. Afterward, settle your meal with a strong cup of gourmet coffee. It will leave you with the taste of victory.
Camp Phoenix DFAC
Head on down to Camp Phoenix for its renowned barbecue tent! The smoky aroma of freshly grilled burgers, steaks and hot dogs will take you back to the lazy days of summer break. Flexible outdoor/indoor seating options allow visitors to soak up rays on clear Afghan days or to take cover in the event of indirect fire. If possible, make a special trip for Ribs Day. Straight out of the comfort of a Southern kitchen, the tender, fall-off-the-bone meat will have you loosening your belt and lickin’ your fingers the entire convoy ride home.
Camp Eggers DFAC
Camp Eggers has two dining facilities — Goat and Marshall, for double the capacity and double the mediocrity. Fake Tex-Mex, fake roast beef, fake turkey and fake burgers. Even the real steak tastes fake. Given the selection, most meals ultimately degrade into some combination of cereal, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and saltine crackers. Slightly better than eating field rations in the mountains while evading insurgents, but not by much.
Camp Julien DFAC
“The food at Camp Julien was revolting and unhealthy. I’d rather eat shell casings.” – Anonymous U.S. Special Operations service member
Lt. Andrew Sand of the Navy is currently deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan, where he helps train the Afghan National Army. In writing this post, he received contributions from Sean Stuart and Chief Michael Solis of the Navy. The views expressed in this post are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Navy, the Defense Department or the United States government.
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