KABUL - Senior American and Afghan officials held talks Saturday to try to iron out the details of a key pact signed a year ago that defines the future of the United States’ commitment to Afghanistan.
The Strategic Partnership Agreement outlines a set of principles and general commitments for relations between Washington and Kabul after 2014, when foreign combat troops are to withdraw from Afghanistan. But there is lingering uncertainty over whether either party will be willing or able to stick to the provisions of the pact, which includes several provisions for both nations.
The meeting Saturday in Kabul between U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmai Rasoul is the second round of negotiations over how to implement theagreement, which was signed in May 2012 by President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
The deal spells out Washington’s commitment to Afghanistan over the next 10 years as well as its expectations of Kabul, including free and fair presidential elections next year, pledges to fight corruption, improve efficiency and protect human rights, including women’s rights.
Sticking points may include the amount of funds the U.S. provides to Afghan security forces. The two countries are also still squabbling over a separate agreement that would protect from prosecution a residual force of as many as 10,000 U.S. troops who would stay behind after the final withdrawal.
In remarks before Saturday’s talks, Burns promised that Washington would stick by Afghanistan and its nascent national security forces after 2014 and the end to the international combat mission.
But the deal allows either country to opt out with one year’s notice, which means that Karzai’s successor in next year’s presidential elections could scuttle the agreement.
Karzai’s election in 2009 was marred by widespread allegations of corruption, vote tampering and election fraud. He denied the charges but the acrimonious aftermath tainted his relationship with the West, which was the most vocal of his critics.
The pact emphasizes a free, fair and transparent election in 2014. Karzai however has been relentless in his criticism of U.S. involvement in Afghanistan’s political process, alleging Washington was maneuvering secretly to strengthen his political opposition even though he cannot run for a third term.
Burns denied that Washington was backing any candidate to replace Karzai.
“We are supporting the process and not any particular candidate,” he said, addingthe elections next year should be “transparent, credible and inclusive.”
Burns also repeated Washington’s support for the opening of an office for the Taliban in Qatar to provide a venue where Karzai’s High Peace Council could meet Taliban representatives to try to find a peaceful end to the 12-year war.
The Taliban have met representatives of about 30 countries, participated in international forums in Tokyo and France, and held talks with Afghanistan’s opposition politicians. But they have steadfastly refused to meet Karzai’s representatives including the High Peace Council, calling his government a “puppet.”
Karzai recently accused the United States of trying to bring his political opponents and the Taliban together, an allegation the U.S. denied and Burns tried also to dispel in his opening remarks.
“We reaffirm our support for the office in Doha for thepurpose of negotiation between the High Peace Council and the Taliban,” Burns said.
The U.S. diplomat added that on the security front, Washington is on track to transfer full control of Afghanistan’s security to Afghan forces by the end of the year.
The next meeting is scheduled for Washington in October. Rasoul at the last meeting said that he expected a conclusion of the talks within eight to 10 months but the U.S. is not giving a time frame.
Meanwhile, unidentified kidnappers abducted 11 Afghans working in a U.N.-affiliated land-mine clearing program in the east of the country, officials said Saturday.
The 11 were taken Thursday in a remote part of Nangarhar province, said Hazrat Hussain Mashreqiwal, provincial police spokesman. Hedid not name the abductors but said local officials and tribal elders were trying to negotiate the mine clearers’ freedom.
Also Saturday, a series of bombings targeted Afghanistan’s intelligence and security personnel.
In a remote corner of northeastern Afghanistan a bomb killed an intelligence officer at his home, while in eastern Afghanistan a remote-controlled bomb ripped through a police vehicle killing two and injuring three other police officers, many of them seriously. A third bombing in Afghanistan’s northern Faryab province wounded the district police chief.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for any of the bombings but Taliban insurgents have been targeting Afghan National Security Forces with deadly regularity. Information for this article was contributed by Kathy Gannon of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 9 on 05/12/2013