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Afghanistan won't bow to US pressure over security pact: Official

Iran Press TV

Fri Dec 6, 2013 7:33PM GMT

A top aide to Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai has accused the US of trying to force Kabul into signing a security deal with Washington, noting that his country will never bow to US pressure.

'There is no doubt that certain elements within the Afghan government are facing pressure from the US. However, this will not achieve anything,' Karzai's spokesman, Aimal Faizi, said in a statement on Friday, adding, 'If there is a perception in Washington that certain elements in Kabul can force President Karzai to succumb to any pressure, it is seriously flawed and mistaken.'

This comes after Washington said that the deal could be signed by Afghanistan's defense minister. US Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday said the bilateral pact could be signed by Afghan defense minister, effectively circumventing Karzai.

More frustration is growing in the US and NATO countries over the Afghan leader's refusal to sign a bilateral security deal on the future of US military presence in the war-torn country.

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has recently urged Kabul government to sign the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) with the US as a matter of urgency.

Washington is also warning that the global support for Afghanistan will fade, if President Karzai continues to delay signing the security pact.

US President Barack Obama has rejected President Karzai's suggestion to delay signing the deal. The US has repeatedly said it will not wait until after the April 2014 presidential vote to seal the agreement.

The deal allows the US to keep thousands of its troops in Afghanistan beyond the 2014 withdrawal date for foreign troops.

Afghan activists say the security treaty between Washington and Kabul will pave the way for a prolonged US military presence in the war-ravaged country.

Afghan political figures have also heaped scorn on US-led forces for committing unforgivable crimes against Afghan women and children since invading the country in 2001.

President Karzai and other senior Afghan officials have also repeatedly warned the United States to end night raids that fuel anti-American sentiment across the war-torn country.

'It simply cannot be another ten-year chapter of raids on Afghan homes, civilian casualties and seeking peace in Afghanistan,' Karzai's top aide concluded.

JR/AB