28 January 2004
U.S. Committed to Realization of Afghan Stability
State's Taylor says there is no cut-off date for U.S. assistance
By Stephen Kaufman
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The State Department's Coordinator for Afghanistan, Ambassador William Taylor, said the United States will continue its involvement in Afghanistan "until there is an end state, not an end date."
In his January 27 testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Ambassador Taylor said the ultimate goal of the United States and other international donors is to help Afghanistan become a market-oriented, democratically-inclined state with a stable government in firm control of the country and able to provide for the needs of its people.
The United States is committed to a "stable responsible government that will never again be a harbor for terrorists," he said.
Taylor said the Afghan government, the United Nations and the international community continue to see June 2004 as the target date for presidential and parliamentary elections.
The U.N., he said, is planning to expand voter registration beyond the eight urban centers currently in operation to 32 centers, one for the main city in each province. Once the weather improves in the spring, they will try to register voters in rural villages as well, he said.
Currently, said the ambassador, only 600,000 voters have been registered out of an estimated 10.5 million, and he admitted that because of registration and other challenges, including some disputes over the number of provinces and boundaries, there was a possibility that the June election date could be moved.
Nevertheless, he said, "we are targeted on June. We're going through some very realistic planning for this right now. If that has to change as of some period of time in the next couple of months, then the government of Afghanistan will make that decision."
General James Jones, the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) testified as to the role of Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) in the country. He said the PRTs enable the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) "to facilitate and create an environment that allows for reconstruction and nation-building activities to proceed."
General Jones said there are currently nine active PRTs operating across Afghanistan, six of which are led by U.S. forces. The PRTs are composed of both civilian and military elements. He explained that the civilian component, made up of Afghans, U.N. personnel and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) perform reconstruction and infrastructure projects, while the military component provides security.
The PRTs, he said, are "designed to meet specific requirements relative to security, terrain and socioeconomic conditions" for the province to which they are assigned.
"In this way, a properly-sized, efficient military PRT element, working in close cooperation and synchronized with a civilian element, can have a significant effect and influence on a considerable geographic portion of Afghanistan," said Jones.
The general added that NATO is planning to add four or five additional PRTs, and said Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers will accompany the military components and gradually assume more responsibility.
On the issue of narcotics and poppy production, Ambassador Taylor said Afghan authorities and the international community are "not winning this battle yet." But he said there are plans and a strategy to combat the problem based upon crop eradication, crop substitution, offering alternative jobs, and increased law enforcement.
Taylor said there would be "a serious eradication program that will begin very soon," which will reduce the number of poppies being grown. He also said there would be an increased focus on police training and providing equipment, which will lead to greater law enforcement.
"I hope I can come back to you ... in six months, and tell you we've made some good progress. We have plans, but we need to demonstrate to you and to the Afghan people and to the world that we're actually going to implement those plans," he said.
The ambassador praised Afghanistan's new constitution, agreed upon January 4 by members of the Loya Jirga (Grand Council). However, he called for the full implementation of the rights and responsibilities outlined in the document so that it will be "more than a piece of paper."
He said the country's economy has been "jump started" by the large amount of U.S. and international assistance, including the reconstruction of the Kabul-Kandahar highway. He said the International Monetary Fund reported that Afghanistan's economy grew by 30 percent in 2003, and 20 percent in the current year. While the growth came from "a very, very low base," Taylor said it was "a good start for the economic stabilization."
To solidify Afghanistan's economic progress, Taylor called for the implementation of banking laws and dispute settlement resolution mechanisms.
Those mechanisms, he said, "will allow the private sector, both in Afghanistan and the international private sector, to invest in the economy and make it move. That's where the real economic growth comes from."
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Richard Lugar (Republican from Indiana) reported that U.S. assistance for Afghanistan currently stands at $1.6 billion for 2004, and that the Bush administration will seek an additional $1 billion in its fiscal year 2005 budget request.
According to both Taylor and General Jones, the security situation in Afghanistan is also improving, through the training of police and ANA soldiers. General Jones reported that the current strength of the ANA is 5,700 plus 2,100 currently in training. "The goal is to get it up to 10,000 by midsummer, and I think it sounds to me like things are on track," he said.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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