UN Official Urges Regional Cooperation to Stabilize Afghanistan
By VOA News
03 July 2008
A senior United Nations official says greater cooperation between Afghanistan and Pakistan is key to stabilizing the region.
The U.N. envoy to Afghanistan, Kai Eide, says the Afghan and Pakistani governments should enter into a political dialogue to counter the growing insurgency in their border region.
Eide made the comments Thursday on a visit to Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, in a bid to ease tensions between the neighboring countries. The U.N. official says he has received positive signals from both governments.
Eide said building Afghan institutions and improving the economy are also top priorities for stabilizing Afghanistan.
Thursday's comments come after U.S. President George Bush acknowledged June was a "tough month" for American and allied troops in Afghanistan.
Afghan officials said Thursday at least 25 militants were killed in a clash with NATO forces Wednesday, after they attacked troops in the northwestern Badghis province.
And Afghan police say five Afghan soldiers were killed Wednesday, when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb in Logar province.
Separately, officials with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) say children are suffering greatly from war and the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan.
U.N. Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Radhika Coomaraswamy told reporters Thursday in Kabul more Afghan children are being wounded and killed in violence. Others are being recruited to fight, including serving as suicide bombers.
Coomaraswamy also expressed concerns about attacks on schools. She says last year 228 schools were attacked in Afghanistan, resulting in 75 deaths.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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