The US Secretary of State Chuck Hagel said Thursday that the ISAF ministers agreed to begin planning for various contingencies to accomplish an orderly withdrawal of coalition forces from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.
Hagel further added that ISAF ministers reiterated their support for continued planning for the post-2014 NATO mission in Afghanistan.
“As we look beyond the end of our combat mission this year, I told ISAF ministers that the United States continues to support planning for a non-combat, NATO-led mission that would train, advise, and assist Afghan Forces after 2014,” Hagel said.
In the meantime, Hagel said it will be more challenging for the United States and other ISAF nations to support, plan, and execute this post-2014 mission without the early signature of the bilateral security agreement and NATO status of forces agreement.
“That’s why earlier this week President Obama directed the U.S. military to begin additional contingency planning,” Hagel said, adding that, “We will ensure that adequate plans are in place to accomplish an orderly withdrawal by the end of the year should the United States not keep any troops in Afghanistan after 2014.”
The bilateral security agreement draft was endorsed by majority during the consultative Loya Jirga in November last year. However, President Hamid Karzai refused to sign the pact and set new conditions for the signing of the agreement.
President Karzai demanded an immediate halt to US raids on Afghan homes and villages and practical steps towards the Afghan peace process before he sign the agreement with Washington.
The signing of the bilateral security agreement between Kabul and Washington will pave the way for the signature of a similar pact between Afghan government and NATO alliance that will give a legal framework for the presence of NATO troops in Afghanistan beyond 2014.
NATO officials have warned to completely withdraw its troops and equipments from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, if the agreements were not signed by the Afghan government.
Bring our soldiers and our tax dollars home! Forget about Afghanistan! USA helped them for 13 years. Their government is corrupt! The Spokesman for their High Peace Council (HPC) called Osama Bin Laden peace martyr!((( while making incorrect, mean spirited comments about USA. Where does Hamid Karzai find such people??? This HPC Spokesman sounds as bad as Hamid Karzai’s choice of his Parliament PM to do a follow up investigation on an Afghan Army insurgent “clearing” activity several weeks back, which gave a scathing USA/ NATO smearing attempt by the Karzai government, which thanks to excellent New York Times reporting was proven to be a fabricated farce.
Question is where does Hamid Karzai get these horrible people and what is he really up to???
One needs to ask has Hamid Karzai been paid off by the Taliban?? IS Hamid Karzai in fact the new Taliban High Leader????
All news reports lead any intelligent reader to this conclusion!
And now I hear he has just been caught meddling in the current Presidential election, holding Jirga’s between his brother who is running for President, and Doctors Rassoul and Ashraf-Ghani-Ahmadzai! ( Negotiations are underway between Ashraf Ghani-Ahmadzai and Qayoum Karzai’s campaign teams; there is the possibility of a coalition between the two, a source close to Ahmadzai’s campaign said on Tuesday).
(Several election campaigns are engaged in talks to form coalitions before the April presidential elections. The talks between Zalmai Rasoul and Qayoum Karzai to jointly compete in the election did not reach a conclusive answer. Hence negotiations are now underway to unite Abdul Qayoum Karzai and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai with the mediation of President Hamid Karzai. Ashraf Ghani’s campaign team has confirmed the meeting with President Karzai and claimed that Karzai supports Ghani’s team. )
http://www.tolonews.com/elections2014/ashraf-ghani-and-qayoum-karzai-possible-coalition
Where does the corruption end? Where is this Independent Election Commission (IEC) when they are needed to disqualify Presidential Candidates who are clearly breaking the law??????????????????????????????
People I think it is no coincidence that President Obama called President Hamid Karzai after it was confirmed that Hamid Karzai is clearly abusing the privileges of his position in order to steer candidates he clearly favors to win the Afghanistan Election, thus continuing the cycle of gross corruption within Afghanistan’s government, and making excellent argument for President of USA to pull out all USA and by default all NATO forces by end of 2014!
And as citizen of Ukraine who is proud that we rose to our feet and ousted President Viktor Yanukovych, we’d urge Afghans to do the same to Hamid Karzai who is carbon copy of Viktor Yanukovych sad to say. One should ask how many hundreds of millions of dollars Hamid and his brother Qayoum Karzai have stolen from foreign aid providers, money that was wasted by Karzai government or outright embezzled!
My heart goes out for what my own country needs to do to recover, but when I read about what is occurring in Afghanistan, what abuses Hamid Karzai makes, I feel blessed I live in a much better, safer, proud nation. That said I have hope for all the suffering Afghans, all the good Afghans. Please rise up and free yourselves of this tyrant Hamid Karzai! Take control for your own future!