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Afghanistan

U.S. Must Choose Between Afghanistan or Pakistan: Spanta

2014-01-31

[Tolo News] The U.S. must choose between having Afghanistan or Pakistain as a strategic partner before Kabul is willing to sign the Bilateral Security Agrement (BSA), Afghan National Security Advisor Dr. Rangeen Dadfar Spanta said on Thursday. Can we choose Costa Rica? Mauritania? The way things are going with this administration, it'll be Iran. Don't be absurd. Dr. Spanta. We are America, the former, and perhaps future, hegemon. Just as we are allied with both India and Pakistan, we can be allied with Afghanistan as well... and perhaps equally effectively. Dr. Spanta emphasized that the U.S. knows Pakistain is the main "obstacle" to the Afghan government's peace talks with the Taliban, yet refuses to acknowledge it. "The United States is trying to tell the world and the people of Afghanistan that both the wolf and the sheep are their strategic friends," Dr. Spanta said. "Afghanistan's Southern and Eastern borders have been under attack for years, and those who are under attack are our women and kiddies." This week, reports were made in Kunar and Nangarhar The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country.. provinces of increased rocket attacks originating from across the border in Pakistain. There have been a number of heated confrontations over the years between Afghan and Pak border outfits, but no resolution to the skirmishes has been found. Although relations between Kabul and Islamabad seemed to be improving in the fall of 2013, with Pakistain participating in a number of bilateral discussions with the Afghan government about getting Taliban peace talks on track, Dr. Spanta's comments on Thursday made it clear that tensions were still high. "One of the preconditions for signing the BSA is for the U.S. to choose a strategic partnership with one of the two," Dr. Spanta said regarding Afghanistan and Pakistain.

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Afghanistan

German foreign minister in surprise Afghan visit

2011-01-10

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle held talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai Sunday on a surprise trip to Afghanistan. The visit came ahead of a German parliamentary vote in Berlin this month on extending the country’s unpopular mission in war-torn Afghanistan by one year. Westerwelle, arriving in Kabul following a trip to neighbouring Pakistan, held talks with Karzai, Afghan Foreign Minister Salmai Rassul and National Security Advisor Rangeen Dadfar Spanta. He told Karzai that Germany ‘will continue providing support to strengthen the Afghan national security forces,’ according to a statement from Karzai’s office. It added that Westerwelle said his country ‘supports President Karzai’s peace initiative with the Taleban.’ Westerwelle is due to have a private dinner with figures including General David Petraeus, commander of international forces in Afghanistan, and Mark Sedwill, NATO’s senior civilian representative in Afghanistan, late Sunday. He will then end his visit Monday, a German embassy spokesman said. Germany has some 4,600 troops based mainly in the north of Afghanistan, the third-largest contingent after the United States and Britain in an international force of 140,000.

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India-Pakistan

Pakistan seeks clarification on Karzai remarks

2010-07-30

[Dawn] Pakistain said Thursday it was seeking clarification of "incomprehensible" remarks by Afghanistan's Caped President Hamid Karzai calling for tougher Western action against hard boy sanctuaries. Asked by reporters about remarks made by Karzai and his national security adviser Rangeen Dadfar Spanta, foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Basit said their comments were "incomprehensible". "We have asked our ambassador in Kabul to seek clarification as to why these remarks have been made," he said. Karzai did not explicitly mention Pakistain by name, but said the war against terrorism was a war in "the sanctuaries, funding centres and training places of terrorism which are outside Afghanistan". "Whether we are able to destroy these sanctuaries or not is another question. We will try what we can.... Our international allies have this ability, but the question is why they are not doing it?" Basit said the Afghan government officials had based their remarks on thousands of secret US military files leaked earlier this week by website WikiLeaks and that the files amounted to raw intelligence and disinformation. "It is a matter of disinformation so you cannot draw right conclusions from misguided reports," he said. Kabul has consistently accused Pakistain's intelligence agency of supporting Taliban bad boys - including masterminding attacks against Afghan and US-led targets in the country. Islamabad denies the claims. Kabul said information contained in documents released on whistleblowing website WikiLeaks on Sunday backed its long-held position. A secretive US drone war routinely targets Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked groups holed up in Pakistain's lawless border districts with Afghanistan.

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Afghanistan

India opens $150M strategic road linking Afghanistan and Iran

2009-01-23

KABUL, Jan 22: Afghan President Hamid Karzai and India's foreign minister opened a new road on Thursday that would help link Afghanistan with a port in Iran and challenge Pakistani dominance of trade routes into the landlocked country. The 220-km road in the southwest Afghan province of Nimroz is the centrepiece of a $1.1 billion Indian reconstruction effort in Afghanistan. It has drawn criticism from Pakistan, worried about New Delhi's growing influence in the region. India hopes to be able to deliver goods to Afghanistan through the Iranian port of Chahbahar, and this has triggered fears in Pakistan that it is being encircled. Everything triggers those fears ... "This project symbolises India's strong commitment towards development of Afghanistan," said Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee. "It also symbolises the strong determination of the government and people of these two countries that they will not succumb to the pressure of the forces of terror," added Mr Mukherjee, who said he had discussed intelligence-sharing with his Afghan counterpart Rangeen Dadfar Spanta. Heh-heh. Eleven Indian workers and 126 Afghan police and soldiers, who were providing security for the road, were killed during its construction, said Mr Mukherjee. "In fact, for the construction of (every) 1.5km of road, one human life was sacrificed." The road, which cost $150 million and was entirely funded by India, runs from Delaram in Nimroz to Zaranj on the Iranian border, which connects to the Iranian port of Chahbahar. It opens up an alternate route into Afghanistan, which now relies mostly on goods transported overland from ports in Pakistan. We can't use it, of course, but the mere fact the road is there puts pressure on the Paks.

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Afghanistan

India hands over crucial Zaranj-Delaram highway to Afghanistan

2009-01-22

Delaram, Jan 22: India has handed over to Afghan authorities a crucial highway built by it in the face of stiff resistance from Taliban, vowing that the collaboration between the two countries in the field of development will not stop. The 215-km long Delaram-Zaranj highway, a symbol of India's developmental work in the war-ravaged country, was handed over to Afghan authorities by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the presence of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta. "Completion of the road reflects the determination of both India and Afghanistan that nothing can prevent or hinder collaboration between the two countries," Mukherjee said at a function to mark this handover. On the occasion, Karzai said the completion of the Rs 600 crore project is a message to those who want to stop co-operation between India and Afghanistan. "Our co-operation will not stop," the Afghan President said. The Taliban was opposed to this project and launched frequent attacks on the construction workers in an attempt to force the winding up of the work. A total of six Indians, including a Border Roads Organisation driver and four ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) soldiers, and 129 Afghans were killed in these attacks. "Our project personnel did face many challenges in the implementation of the project... in effect one human sacrifice was made for every kilometre and a half constructed," Mukherjee said, describing the completion of the project as "a glowing example" of the India-Afghanistan co-operation. It will further regional co-operation by encouraging new trade and transit through Iranian ports and a supplementary access of Afghanistan to the sea, he said.

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India-Pakistan

Karzai, Singh urge other countries to prevent terrorism

2009-01-13

Gee, whoever could they be talking about ... NEW DELHI - Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday called for other countries to meet their international obligations to prevent terrorism originating from their territories, without specifically mentioning Pakistan. Karzai’s visit to India was to express Afghanistan’s solidarity with the Indian government and people in wake of the Mumbai terrorist attacks, a joint statement by the two leaders said. India has often accused Pakistan of abetting terrorists who launch attacks in Indian territory, especially in disputed Kashmir. Afghan officials have accused Pakistan of harbouring Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. ‘The leaders called for full compliance with ... international obligations of states to prevent terrorism in any manner originating from territories under their control since terrorism emanates from sanctuaries and training camps and the sustenance and support received by the terrorist groups,’ the joint statement said. The two leaders discussed a range of bilateral issues including development and reconstruction projects in Afghanistan with aid from India. Singh said India would give 250,000 metric tons of wheat to Afghanistan during its current food crisis. The Indian prime minister also accepted an invitation to visit Afghanistan. I'll bet that's got the ISI sucking the gaspipe ... Karzai, who arrived on Sunday accompanied by Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta and National Security Advisor Zalmay Rasoul, left for Kabul Monday.

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Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Taliban rejects reports of imminent peace deal

2008-09-30

(AKI) - By Syed Saleem Shahzad - International efforts to strike a peace deal with the Taliban collapsed late Sunday when militant leaders rejected any attempt to engage in negotiations. The Taliban emphatically denied a British media report that suggested that its leadership was engaged in talks with the Afghan government to end the war and reiterated their determination to rid the country of all foreign troops. The British weekly, The Observer, said on Sunday that the Taliban had been engaged in secret talks about ending the conflict in Afghanistan in a 'peace process' sponsored by Saudi Arabia and backed by Britain. Nice going boys, it was supposed to be a secret ... "The mainstream media is reporting a 'peace process' between the Taliban and the Kabul puppet administration which is being sponsored by Saudi Arabia and supported by Britain," the statement said. Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta had previously announced at a media conference that there would be "good news" in a few days regarding a deal with Taliban leaders. But the statement issued by the Taliban from Kabul in Pashto and later in English on Monday categorically denied any such negotiations. It rejected claims that that there were "unprecedented talks" involving a senior ex-Taliban member who is travelling between Kabul and the alleged bases of the Taliban senior leadership in Pakistan. "The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan rejects all these false claims by the enemy who is using this propaganda campaign," the statement said. "The aim of this propaganda is to create an atmosphere of disunity among Muslims in order to weaken the Ummah (Muslim faithful). Our struggle will be continued until the departure of all foreign troops." The statement was signed by the pseudonym of 'Dr Talib' on behalf of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. It also said that former members of the Taliban who had surrendered or were under surveillance were not associated with their organisation.

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Afghanistan

Afghanistan denies holding talks with Taliban

2008-09-29

Afghanistan's foreign minister on Sunday denied reports that the government was in contact with Taliban insurgents to negotiate an end to the conflict. Britain's Observer newspaper on Sunday said the "unprecedented talks" involved a senior ex-Taliban member travelling between Kabul, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and European capitals. "I cannot say anything about the matter that talks between the Taliban and Afghans ... are going on," Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta told a news conference when asked to comment about the report. "I deny there is any contact between the Foreign Ministry and the Taliban about the negotiations," he said when asked for elaboration. "I do not confirm such contacts," he said when pressed if any other government organ was involved in any such process. After the news conference he said with a smile he would have news on this in coming days. The report came as the Taliban have extended the scope and size of their insurgency this year, the bloodiest period since US-led and Afghan forces invaded in 2001. Western leaders and diplomats stress the war in Afghanistan, where more than 71,000 foreign troops are based, cannot be won militarily. But talks with the Taliban had proven problematic.

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Afghanistan

Karzai directly blames Pakistan for attacks

2008-07-14

Watch out for exploding sunroof handles, Hamid... Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday directly accused Pakistan's intelligence agency of being behind a recent wave of deadly attacks in Afghanistan, including the Indian embassy bombing. In a strongly worded statement, Karzai said it was "clear" who was behind the violence, including a suicide bombing in Uruzgan Sunday that killed 24 Afghans and the embassy blast that killed more than more than 40 people. "The murder, killing, destruction, dishonouring and insecurity in Afghanistan is carried out by the intelligence administration of Pakistan, its military intelligence institutions," he said in a statement. "We know who kills innocent people," the statement said. "We have told the government of Pakistan and the world and from now on it will be pronounced by every member of the Afghan nation." Afghanistan regularly accuses Pakistan, a long-time rival of India, of supporting militants who have been waging a deadly insurgency in the nation since the 2001 ouster of the Taliban regime in a US-led invasion. US officials also say that Pakistan has allowed Taliban and Al-Qaeda to regroup in its tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan. Pakistan rejects charges of supporting extremists and says it is doing what it can to stop them. Like how? Making deals with them? The July 7 attack on the Indian embassy was the deadliest in the capital and Afghan officials were quick to point a finger at Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI). India's national security adviser has also blamed the attack, which killed two senior Indian diplomats, on the ISI. "We have no doubt that the ISI is behind this. The ISI is playing evil. The ISI needs to be destroyed," M.K Narayanan told the NDTV news network on Saturday. Pakistan has insisted it was not involved. In his statement, Karzai also referred to the Taliban's killing on Sunday in Ghazni province of two women whom the militants alleged were prostitutes and worked for the police. "These ladies were martyred by terrorists who have been trained in terrorist nests and intelligence offices outside Afghanistan where respect of (women's) honour doesn't mean anything," his statement said. And he said the beheading of two Afghan refugees by Pakistan-based Taliban militants in June would be "avenged." The men were accused of being spies. Kabul and Islamabad are key players in the United States' "war on terror" launched after the September 11, 2001 attacks blamed on Al-Qaeda, which the Taliban regime allowed to operate in Afghanistan. But Afghan and Western officials allege that Islamic extremists have sanctuaries in Pakistan which helped to create the Taliban as an armed militia and was one of only three countries that recognised the hardliners' government. Islamabad officially dropped its support for the Taliban only after the 9/11 attacks but Afghans allege it still wants the new government in Kabul to fail for its own strategic purposes. Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta told the UN Security Council last week that a key factor behind the worsening security in his country was "the de facto truce" in neighbouring Pakistan's tribal areas. He was referring to ongoing peace talks between Pakistani authorities and top Taliban warlord Baitullah Mehsud, blamed by the previous government and US officials for the December assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.

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Europe

Germany: BND-Afghan spying scandal grows

2008-04-26

Kabul believes Germany’s foreign intelligence service may have spied on several Afghan ministers, a newspaper said on Saturday, after news broke that the agency illicitly monitored the economy minister’s emails. The Afghan government believes the Federal Intelligence Service (BND) not only spied on emails between Mohammad Amin Farhang and a reporter for the German news weekly Der Spiegel, but also tapped Farhang’s work and private phones, and may have spied on his colleagues too, according to German regional daily Mitteldeutsche Zeitung. The fact that half a dozen Afghan ministers speak German may have “facilitated the BND’s work,” the newspaper wrote. Der Spiegel reported late last week that Farhang had been the target of a spying operation that had involved one of its journalists. Now it is saying the entire computer network of the Afghan trade and industry ministry could have been under surveillance. The incident of the email spying infuriated Farhang and sparked sharp criticism by a German parliamentary commission against the BND and its chief Ernst Urlau for undermining faith in the agency. “I am appalled and repelled by these methods, which should not be used in a state respecting the rule of law. Such a thing must never be allowed to happen again,” Farhang told Der Spiegel on Saturday. Why? Now Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chancellery office is launching a special investigation into whether the BND was spying on other Afghan ministers. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called his Afghan counterpart Rangeen Dadfar Spanta on Saturday to apologize, expressing regret over the spying of emails between Farhang and the journalist, a foreign ministry spokeswoman said. Urlau apologised personally to the Der Spiegel, journalist in question, Susanne Koelbl, whose emails were read by BND agents from June to November 2006. The German government said Friday the incident had not prompted a formal protest from Kabul but that it would make efforts to smooth over matters. While it remains unclear why the BND had set its sights on Farhang, who has a German passport and lived for several years in Germany, Der Spiegel, said he had been the source for several of its articles in recent years.

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Afghanistan

Kabul wary of peace deal with militants

2008-04-25

Any peace deal between Pakistan and Taliban fighters would fail and terrorism should be tackled globally, Afghan Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta said on Thursday. “We believe that any efforts by any country in our region to have a separate peace deal with international terrorists ... will fail,” he told reporters. “Past experiences have proved that such efforts will only result in those who make such efforts becoming the victims,” he added. A peace deal between Pakistan and pro-Taliban tribes in North Waziristan in September 2006 was criticised in Kabul; officials said it had resulted in increased attacks in Afghanistan. Spanta said countries in the region needed to work together with their international partners in a “clear, continued and coordinated fight against terrorism”, adding that “finding a peaceful way to decrease terrorism in all countries, not only in one place, is an issue that all sides should act upon”.

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Afghanistan

Nine rebels, one soldier killed in Afghanistan

2007-06-05

An Afghan soldier and nine militants were killed and 11 people, including nine foreign troops, wounded in fresh violence across Afghanistan, officials said on Monday. Six Taliban rebels were killed in a gunfight with Afghan and NATO-led troops in the eastern province of Paktia, provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Sarjang said. Separately, a soldier with the US-led coalition and an Afghan interpreter were wounded when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb in the province of Khost on Monday, a spokesman with the NATO-led force told AFP. Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Supreme Court has ruled that parliament’s sacking of foreign minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta after a vote of no- confidence was unconstitutional. Spanta lost the May 12 vote, called after the Iranian government began forcing out tens of thousands of Afghans living in the country illegally, two days after a similar one cost the refugees minister his job. President Hamid Karzai referred Spanta’s case to the Supreme Court, saying the voting procedure was irregular. He also questioned if a minister could be subjected to a no-confidence vote on an issue not directly related to his work. Spanta meanwhile continued his official duties.

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