NATO and Afghan leaders were set to debate
the future of the international mission in Afghanistan on Sunday amid tensions
between Washington, Kabul and European capitals, dpa
reported.
US National Security Advisor James Jones, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and
German Defence Minister Franz-Josef Jung were to address the prestigious Munich
Security Conference at a time when Western leaders are becoming increasingly
critical of Karzai's regime and NATO members are struggling to raise troops to
combat the Taliban.
NATO has sent some 55,000 troops to the UN-mandated International Security
Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, almost half of them from the United States.
But the alliance is fighting an increasingly bitter battle against the
resurgent Taliban, with commanders on the ground calling out for more soldiers.
US President Barack Obama has pledged to almost double the number of US troops
in Afghanistan, but has called on European members to boost their efforts in
the country, either by sending more men or by providing more support to the
Afghan government, army and police.
"America will do more. The bad news is that America will ask more from our
partners as well," US Vice-President Joe Biden told the conference on
Saturday.
That call is likely to cause anxiety in Europe, where the Afghan campaign is
far from popular with voters, and where some governments are reluctant to
commit soldiers to the hottest combat areas, despite fierce pressure from
allies such as Britain and Canada.
It will be a particularly sensitive issue in Germany, which faces federal
elections in September. NATO officials say that they are keen to avoid the
Afghan mission becoming an electoral issue.
At the same time, Western capitals have become increasingly vocal in their
criticism of Karzai's government, which they accuse of inefficiency, corruption
and stalling key reforms.
In return, Karzai has demanded that NATO do more to prevent civilian casualties
in his country.
Obama has also pledged to widen US efforts in the region to take in Pakistan - frequently portrayed as a safe haven for militants.
Later on Sunday, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Makhdoom Qureshi is set to debate
the future of NATO's Afghan mission with, among others, British Defence
Minister John Hutton and US General David Petraeus, who scored some of the
earliest successes in stabilizing Iraq.
Richard Holbrooke, Obama's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, is also due to join the debate.