Security Agreement Between US And Afghanistan Imminent

Security Agreement Between US And Afghanistan Imminent

US National Security Adviser Susan Rice said that reports that a formal apology letter was included in an upcoming security agreement between the United States and Afghanistan are wrong. The statements indicated that an apology letter was offer by the US to ensure that US troops will remain in Afghanistan after the 2014 withdrawal deadline.

Rice said that the letter was not a part of the discussions between the two countries. The claim initially emerged after discussions between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Jen Psaki of the US Department of State said declined to comment on the supposed formal apology letter. The discussion between Kerry and Karzai came before a meeting among leaders in Afghanistan. The discussion was centered on a possible security agreement that will result to the continued stay of a small number of US troops in Afghanistan.

Kerry opted to decline an invitation to attend the meeting of Afghan leaders. However, he offered a letter that offered assurances by the US on the future relationship between the two countries.

However, no formal apology letter will be given by the US. A general agreement was reached between the two countries recently. Rice indicated that final stages of the discussions were being worked out between the two countries during the discussion between Kerry and Karzai.

The agreement will ensure a certain cooperation level between the two countries.

A number of major issues were revealed through a statement from the office of Karzai. These issues include the opposition of the Afghan government to US raids on Afghan homes. Two alternatives were provided by Karzai, Kerry should make a case for the military raids at the meeting among Afghan leaders and putting off a bilateral security agreement until the Afghan presidential elections are done.

The US raids were acknowledged by Jim Carney, spokesman for the White House. Troop levels were set to be reduced by the US with the objective of ending combat mission by US troops in 2014.

Although the final number for US troops in Afghanistan remains uncertain, it may consist of around 8,000 troops depending on the security agreement between the two countries.

Posted by James Fried on Thursday November 21 2013, 2:15 AM EST. Ref: CNN. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0