TRANSCRIPT

Foreign Minister Abdullah: [Translated from Dari Text]

In the name of Allah
Good afternoon
Please turn off your telephones.

You might be aware that an international conference, under the title of Afghanistan Compact, is to be held in London at the end of January and beginning of February next year.

At the London Conference, there is an agreement to be discussed and signed. Also the work on the agreement will start. This is what the conference is aiming to achieve.
I will briefly tell you what issues the agreement includes.

More information will be offered by SRSG Jean Arnault and the Italian ambassador Ms. Marsden, in Kabul.

Afghanistan Compact will define the frame of the cooperation between Afghanistan and the international community for a period of five years. The agreement will cover ensuring cooperation, establishing of a sound administration, development of Afghanistan, and ensuring its security. Moreover, a mechanism for a better coordination of the world community and the UN will be discussed at the conference.
As you know the work on national strategy of development is under way. The London Conference is an opportunity to discuss this strategy.

The London Conference is also an opportunity to obtain the commitment of the international community, because the Bonn Agreement ended with the completion of the parliamentary elections. The London Conference is a renewal of commitment between Afghanistan and the international community - a commitment that is mutual, not one sided.

The conference, to be attended by British Prime Minister Tony Blair and UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan, will help us ensure the security, peace and stability of Afghanistan and its development in various areas.

SRSG: Thank you very much, Minister. Perhaps I will try to supplement the comments that have been made by the Minister by giving you something of an international perspective on this event. There has, in fact been quite a good deal of thinking done over the past several weeks and months within the international community regarding the next stage – that is once the political institutions are in place, and therefore once the Bonn Process, per se, comes to an end. And you may have heard earlier some concern on the part of the United Nations that based on our experience in other countries there might be a temptation in some quarters in the international community to sort of ‘declare victory and leave’ or at the very least to go back to business as usual as if the fundamentals of rebuilding of the Afghanistan state had been already achieved.

And frankly, the first good news for us in the announcement of the holding of the London Conference is a demonstration, reassuringly, that the international community has chosen another course. And that, in fact, it has chosen to maintain and intensify its special relationship with Afghanistan for a fairly long period of time. For five years.

At the same time, let me tell you that the consensus that we see emerging these days with regard to the future cooperation with Afghanistan has a number of interesting features.

The first one, I would say, is a perception within the international community that in spite of the very significant achievements of the past four years, the job, our job, is not done. And that with regard to security, with regard to development, with regard to counter-narcotics, with regard to human rights, our role remains key.

The second point has to do with the sense of urgency. All of you have been witness to the fact that during the past four years a sense of urgency has clearly dominated the process. It is no mean feat that in the space of three-and-a-half years a transitional government was created, a constitution was adopted, a president was elected, a national assembly was elected. And all that against the context of a country with little electoral tradition, with little tradition of peaceful negotiation of major political issues, and also against – we are reminded – the background of ongoing conflict. All that was possible because a very strong sense of urgency prevailed. We think that sense of urgency must remain. And while a lot of stress has been put on all of us, on the Government, on civil society, on the international community, on the aid agencies, there is no time for relaxation. The next five years would have to be just about as intense as the past four years have been.

The third point I would like to make, is that while everybody in the international community today understands that the relationship with Afghanistan must continue, I think there’s also a sense that it must improve. And that somehow the next five years should be a little different from the past four years, particularly with regard to a few key issues. The first one is, let’s make sure that international assistance is clearly focussed on building Afghan capacity, and on building lasting Afghan institutions. The second point, let’s make sure that there is a higher degree of transparency in the way in which this assistance is allocated, and let’s make sure there’s a strong sense of fairness in the way in which this assistance is allocated across the country. I think there’s also a very strong sense, not only among ourselves but within the Government and within public opinion that the struggle against corruption must become first and foremost in the way that this assistance is allocated, in the way that our projects are executed.

And finally, something which is related to an event that will take place at the end of the week. All of us have a strong sense that the neighbouring countries, and the potential that they offer, should be brought much more centrally into the process of reconstruction of Afghanistan. So as you see, at the end of the day, we are talking about a heavy agenda, no less heavy and perhaps heavier than the agenda of the past three-and-a-half years. But we at the UN feel very confident that it reflects not only the view of the international community but also more deeply the aspirations of most Afghans. And at the end of the day we think that this will make the London Conference not only successful but a successful beginning. Thank you.

HMA Marsden: Thank you Minister. If I could just make some points from the UK’s perspective. First of all, President Karzai invited the United Kingdom to host the conference in London and the UK is delighted to be doing so. And we will be co-chairing the Conference with the Afghan Government and the United Nations. As Dr Abdullah mentioned, President Karzai, the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, are all planning to attend the conference. And we expect a high level of attendance from other countries and institutions, which are engaged in supporting Afghanistan’s development. We very much welcome the fact that there is going to be a new Compact between Afghanistan and the international community. Afghanistan has made remarkable progress since 2001, but huge challenges remain and continuing international support is needed. And we see the London Conference as an opportunity for the international community to demonstrate that it remains strongly committed to Afghanistan. As a sign of the UK’s commitment the British Government signed a long-term agreement with Afghanistan when President Karzai visited London in July. And under our EU presidency the European Union has just signed an agreement for a new EU-Afghan partnership when President Karzai was in Strasbourg on the 16th of November. The UK, as president of the G8, will also be co-hosting a conference in Kabul on the 4th and 5th of December on regional economic cooperation when neighbouring states, G8 countries, and multilateral institutions will have the opportunity to discuss further how to enhance regional economic cooperation.

Foreign Minister Abdullah: As the ambassador mentioned, the UK as president of the G8, will also be co-hosting a conference in Kabul on December 4 and 5 on regional economic cooperation with neighbouring countries. Twelve countries, including Afghanistan, will discuss the regional economic cooperation which would be for the benefit of Afghanistan and the region. I would like to thank Jean Arnault, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and British Ambassador, Ms. Marsden for co-hosting this upcoming conference

Questions & Answers:

Question: Previously assistance has been directed through NGOs and other organizations. Will there be a broad change in this approach, or will assistance continue to come indirectly to the Government of Afghanistan?

SRSG: I think there are two elements there. One is that no doubt there is a sense that providing a larger amount of resources through the Afghan Government is a good thing. It’s a good thing for several reasons. One, it certainly helps develop within the Government itself the capacity to handle international assistance. The second is that it makes coordination and allocation of resources within the Government easier. There is at the same time a third point, which is a limitation to the ability of the international community to channel resources exclusively through the Government. And that, essentially, is a question of capacity. Not in all areas does the Government have the capacity to handle resources in a way that is fully transparent and fully effective. And there will be, certainly over the next few weeks and perhaps a little longer, a debate between Government agencies on the one hand and the international community on the other as to what is the most transparent and the most effective way to make sure that money is actually disbursed and projects are actually executed. In that debate the UN has no doubt as to what the ultimate objective must be. And the ultimate objective must be that in Afghanistan, like in many other countries, that resources are essentially put at the disposal of government. But let’s not try to rush beyond what is also a major feature of international aid, which is that it must be transparent, it must be effective.

Question: What is the UN thinking in regard to security?

SRSG: You know I think one of the great challenges of the next five years is that, contrary to the Bonn Process, we no longer have an over-arching priority. The Bonn Process had to be transitioning from an interim authority to a fully representative government with a fully accepted constitution. This institution already exists now. The national assembly will soon be inaugurated. The elected executive has been in place now for almost a year. The question now is how to assist these institutions to deliver on their constitutional commitments along a very large range of issues that involve security, that involve human rights, that involve development, that involve counter-narcotics, that involve major determinants of the well being of the common Afghan. And as I said, our challenge in our joint action with the Government is going to be able to move simultaneously on these multiple fronts while giving the people of Afghanistan a sense of confidence that while problems are serious, are grave, and solutions will not happen tomorrow morning, that together we are on the right course and that we can create a sense of confidence that within five years on security, on development, on agriculture, health, and education we will be able to make a difference.

Question: Mr Arnault, you commented that there was a danger that the international community might declare victory and leave. Isn’t there clear evidence of that in that 4,000 US troops are going to be leaving the country next year, and also that NATO is having such difficulties in getting troops to take over in the south? Therefore, would it be right to describe this summit in London as a crisis meeting?

SRSG: With regard to security, what is our main concern? First and foremost that the security assistance available to the Government of Afghanistan maintain its performance and its credibility. How that is done is, frankly, not really our business. Whether the package will contain a smaller or higher ingredient of US versus Canadian, German, British or other troops, this is really not a problem and could not be. At the same time, as I said, we are certainly very keen to see that at the end of the day what Afghanistan needs, Afghanistan gets in terms of security assistance. And we will be certainly prevailing upon our friends in the international community that indeed London must not be an opportunity for anyone, as I said, to declare victory and leave but an opportunity, if need be, to reshuffle, to make adjustments. How many adjustments must be made? We will not be the judge, but the capacity, the performance, the credibility of the force must be preserved.

And as for what London will be? No, I really do not think that London is a crisis conference. And what I told you at the beginning in my introduction is that we have been very reassured by consultations that have been taking place over the past several weeks that there is really a commitment of the international community to see Afghanistan through the next phase of its rebuilding. That reassurance is genuine as far as we are concerned. That doesn’t mean that of course it will not be a struggle to make sure throughout the next five years that the commitments that people have entered into are actually upheld. It is business as usual in post-conflict peace building and I’m sure there will be several opportunities for us at the UN to remind ourselves and everyone else of the commitment that they will enter into at the end of January.

Foreign Minister Abdullah:

Question: How many countries who made pledges at the Tokyo Conference have come through on their promise? What would be the priorities of the Afghan government in the upcoming conference in London?

Foreign Minister Abdullah: The commitments, which were made in Tokyo as well as in Berlin, are still ongoing and some of the projects may take a few more years as they are long-term commitments. Most countries fulfilled their commitment and we are grateful for that. Some of the projects may take another two to three years to be completed therefore the achievements are not visible.

Regarding the assistance that how much would be directed through the government of Afghanistan and how much to the non-governmental organizations, this will be discussed in the London Conference that whether Afghanistan has the capability of carrying out the projects on its own.

As SRSG Jean Arnault said, whether all this assistance comes directly to the government of Afghanistan it will be too early to tell at this moment.

At the Tokyo Conference Afghanistan did not have any institution or had the capacity of carrying out such projects. We had government institutions only by name and in practice they did not exist.

The international community would not throw their assistance in the river. It is correct that there were complaints but they were either on the high expenses and sometimes lack of transparency in some of the projects.

Three important points will be discussed at the London Conference:

1- The role of Afghanistan in the upcoming assistance
2- The effectiveness and efficiency of the programmes
3- The accountability and monitoring of activities - and this has been pointed out in the joint statement of how Afghanistan establishes a framework for cooperation between the international community for the next five years.

Question: What are your specific plans? What would be the scope of your discussion at the upcoming London Conference? If you will be asked about the Human Rights violators what would be your achievements so far?

Foreign Minister Abdullah: Actually there is a mutual commitment. The government of Afghanistan has its obligation to fulfil. The international community, beside all the assistance they provided so far, will renew their commitments.

The important points of the agenda would be on the security situation, governance and the development and human rights that you have mentioned will be included.

There will be an appeal on the international community to continue their assistance for Afghanistan. There are also consultations undergoing now with the international community in various aspects.

For example, if we talk about building the national army as well as being equipped and funded, we should have a better plan in order to call on the international community to support us.

In regards to human rights, there have been achievements but still big challenges to face.

And this will also be discussed in the upcoming conference.

Question: At the Bonn Conference one of the agendas was fighting terrorism as well as the campaign against drugs. Apparently we witnessed an increase in drug use and according to a recent UNODC report over one million Afghans are addicted to drugs. In respect to all these problems, how will Afghanistan present its achievements at the London Conference?

Foreign Minister Abdullah: The international community has no doubt that Afghanistan has a lot of achievements in regard to the fight against drugs.

If we have a terrorist attack in a corner of Afghanistan, this also can take place in other parts of the world. The situation of Afghanistan indeed is different than the outside world. But we have very visible achievements in the fight against terrorism. Like four years back, 90 percent of Afghanistan was under the control of Osama and other international terrorists. And now it is not.

Question: We had an accountability week. The government has spent 1.6 billion dollars of donated money. Will the NGOs too have to give the account of their work? When the Tokyo Conference was held, the state institutions did not have the capacity to utilize the donated money. Do you think the state is prepared at the future conference to directly absorb the money from the donors now?
Foreign Minister Abdullah: Both the UN report as well as the report submitted by the USA show a progress with regard to the reduction in narcotics in Afghanistan. Reduction in the area of poppy cultivation is 48 percent. Struggle against drug trafficking should continue. Drug trafficking is not a matter related to Afghanistan only. It is an international disaster, as September 11 showed.

On the accountability of NGOs steps have been taken with respect to the NGOs in Afghanistan; the state has already passed the laws on NGOs, for example. According to our experience, some of them have been working very well, but Afghans have not been satisfied with the work done by others. At the Tokyo Conference, we had to accept any assistance, whether through NGOs or direct transference of aids to the state.

Considering the progress we have had, we do not have to accept all the conditions the donor suggest.

We try to accept their donations through NGOs which are accountable and their activities have been useful.

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