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US opens Afghan talks on long-term troop presence after 2014
Robert Bales shooting trial puts thorny issue of US troop immunity centre stage, with Hamid Karzai hoping to wring tough concessions
Guardian.co.uk By Emma Graham-Harrison Monday 19 November 2012
Kabul - Afghanistan and the US have opened talks to keep American troops in the country after most Nato forces go home in 2014, but the thorny question of immunity for American soldiers, which in effect ended the US role in Iraq last year, is likely to prove a stumbling block.
The issue has been thrown into sharp relief by the Seattle trial of the US army staff sergeant Robert Bales, who is accused of the massacring 16 Afghan civilians, mostly women and children, during a shooting spree at their homes in March. US prosecutors are seeking the death penalty but many Afghans, including some of the victims' relatives, want to see him brought before one of their own courts.
"Immunity [for US soldiers] is going to be challenging," said one western official as talks on the bilateral security agreement started late last week. The issue has been set aside in early negotiations, US and Afghan officials said, because the intensity of the clash between Washington's desire to protect its soldiers and the Afghan government's desire to control trial and punishment of any future offenders.
"To be frank, I do not see a way around this. Neither side looks as if they would budge," said Thomas Ruttig, director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network. "Particularly for the US, this (waiving immunity) would be unprecedented. The Afghan government might use it to get other concessions out of the US, but I am not sure what they are aiming at."
The Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, a tough negotiator who has tended to win concessions, said last month the question of protections for US soldiers could be a problem in talks. "Afghanistan wants a strategic pact with US but will seriously consider the red lines," said his spokesman, Aimal Faizi. "The most important issue for Afghanistan is its national sovereignty."
Karzai is possibly betting that the US needs Afghan bases to strike at radical groups hiding along the lawless, mountainous border with Pakistan, and to help peer into Iran's eastern regions. Al-Qaida has made a comeback in Afghanistan, despite the death of its former leader, Osama bin Laden, the commander of US and Nato forces, General John Allen, admitted recently. "We do not want al-Qaida to feel as though [the group] can put down roots here," he told CBS news
Even so, the US is far readier to walk away from Afghanistan than it once was, as the domestic economy sputters and interest in the war fades among voters. The Afghan government cannot survive without US financial and military support in some form, western diplomats and officials have said, and Karzai has not yet fully grasped the shift in dynamics.
There is little question that without help Kabul would struggle. Up to 90% of the national budget is financed by foreign aid, and the Afghan police and army still lack vital skills, from bomb-disposal teams, intelligence, and air support to medical care for injured soldiers.
However, Karzai speaks for many Afghans who would prefer US cash to troops, and even argue that a lasting foreign military presence could give insurgents an excuse to dodge peace talks that are viewed by many as the best hope for ending decades of conflict.
"If the foreigners take home their forces, there will be no reason for the Taliban to send people in the name of jihad," said Allah Gul Mujahed, a conservative member of parliament from the capital, Kabul, who was once with the mujahideen fighting Soviet forces.
Many Afghans were unhappy that Bales had been taken to America and would not accept a deal that enshrined similar protections, he added. "We want everything to be under Afghan law."
Additional reporting by Mokhtar Amiri
Opium Cultivation Rises in Afghanistan
VOA News November 20, 2012
ISLAMABAD — A report Tuesday from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said the amount of Afghan farmland planted with opium poppies has increased by nearly 20 percent this year.
Record high prices for opium combined with corruption and a lack of security is encouraging farmers around the country to turn again to the illegal but high-value crop.
The figures for 2012 are alarming, said Jean-Luc Lemahieu, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
"An increase of 18 percent is a serious alarm signal, it's a wake up call," he said. "The gains made over the last years have been undone. We are again with the kind of figures in parallel to the high peaks of 2008, 2007, 2006. Now this country, working towards transition, can ill afford this."
Ninety-five percent of the poppy cultivation is taking place in western and southern Afghanistan, areas affected by fighting with the Taliban.
Lemahieu said the insurgency is one of the main beneficiaries of the drug trade. But he also blames corruption, the lack of rule of law, local conflicts and the government's apparent lack of interest in dealing with the problem.
Despite years of eradication efforts, the Afghan Interior Ministry finally made poppy eradication one of its top ten priorities just three days ago.
"It took too long," Lemahieu said. "And this hesitation is what is problematic to us."
According to the United Nations, although poppy growing has increased and is expected to go up next season, overall production of opium is down. But the drop is mainly because of bad weather and plant disease.
Muzamel Shinwari, Afghanistan's deputy minister for trade, said the country has been trying to diversify its exports to give farmers an alternative.
"The only product that can counter the illegal export of drugs is saffron, and we are focusing on that," Shinwari said. "It is quite expensive and there is a good market."
Seventeen out of Afghanistan's 34 provinces have been declared poppy-free.
Karzai Orders Afghan Forces to Take Control of American-Built Prison
New York Times By ROD NORDLAND November 19, 2012
KABUL, Afghanistan - President Hamid Karzai ordered Afghan forces to take control of the American-built Bagram Prison and accused American officials of violating an agreement to fully transfer the facility to the Afghans, according to a statement from his office on Monday.
The move came after what Mr. Karzai said was the expiration of a two-month grace period, agreed to by President Obama, to complete the transfer of the prison at Bagram Air Base.
At issue in particular are 57 prisoners held there who had been acquitted by the Afghan courts but who have been held by American officials at the prison for more than a month in defiance of release orders, Aimal Faizi, the spokesman for President Karzai, said in an interview.
Afghan officials were also concerned about the status of new detainees being captured by American troops. The Afghans feel those detainees should be transferred to their control under the deal signed by the two countries this year.
Mr. Faizi said hundreds of new prisoners were being held by American authorities in a closed-off section of Bagram Prison, which the American military calls the Detention Facility in Parwan. American forces, mainly Special Operations troops carrying out night raids, have been arresting more than 100 suspected insurgents a month, Afghan officials said.
“We expect the Americans to respect the agreement according to the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries,” Mr. Faizi said.
The American military did not respond to specific Afghan complaints, but United States Forces-Afghanistan released a statement saying, “The United States fully respects the sovereignty of Afghanistan, and we are committed to fulfilling the mutual obligations incurred under the Memorandum of Understanding on Detentions.”
American officials have said the agreement left open to further negotiation how to handle new battlefield detainees. Those negotiations have stalled, however, over disputes about prisoners from before whom the Americans have refused to let go.
Tensions over detainee transfers have been on the front burner since the memo of understanding was signed in March, setting a six-month timeline for full transfer of Parwan to Afghan authority. That deadline lapsed with central issues still unresolved, leading to a two-month extension agreed to in a videoconference between Mr. Karzai and Mr. Obama in September.
The disagreement now threatens to complicate an even larger issue: the two countries began negotiations last week on a status of forces agreement that would govern any American military presence remaining in Afghanistan after 2014.
In the statement by Mr. Karzai’s office on Monday, he was quoted as saying the Americans were in “serious breach” of the prison transfer agreement and ordered Afghan officials to take “urgent measures to ensure a full Afghanization of the prison affairs and a complete transfer of its authority.”
American officials, however, say it is not so simple. One official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the issue’s sensitivity, said: “It’s an issue of sovereignty for the government of Afghanistan, and to General Allen it’s a matter of security for the coalition troops. You can’t just bring these guys in and let them go.” Gen. John R. Allen is the departing commander of American and NATO troops here.
The American military’s statement maintained that the agreement “contains reciprocal commitments to provide for the security of Afghan citizens, the A.N.S.F. and coalition forces by keeping captured enemy combatants from returning to the battlefield.” It added that the military was confident of working out a solution with Afghanistan.
Mr. Faizi said there would not immediately be a change in control over the Bagram facility, despite the Afghan president’s strongly worded statement. He said Afghan officials would hold discussions with American officials and report back to Mr. Karzai in the next few days about how to carry out his order. After that, Mr. Karzai would announce his government’s next steps.
Bagram Prison, which can hold more than 3,000 detainees, lies within Bagram Air Base and is surrounded by American checkpoints, and is heavily staffed by American guards.
Rights advocates welcomed Mr. Karzai’s move. Tina Foster, the executive director of the International Justice Network, who represents some Bagram detainees, met recently with Afghan officials to try to visit her clients in the prison. The Afghans approved the visits, but the United States military blocked them, she said.
“When we met with Karzai’s staff it was clear that the Afghans are tired of being treated like servants in their own country,” Ms. Foster said. “Symbolic gestures are not going to cut it anymore. They want the keys to the prison, and the ability to determine the fates of the prisoners held there.”
Afghanistan Says U.S. Broke Pact on Prisons
Wall Street Journal
By MARIA ABI-HABIB November 19, 2012
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai accused the U.S. on Monday of violating an agreement on transferring the country's main U.S. prison to Afghan control, demanding that Afghanistan take over the facility immediately and that many insurgent suspects be freed.
Western officials say Kabul is trying to renegotiate key aspects of the March deal, under which the Afghan government took control of most detainees in the prison, the Bagram detention center. Mr. Karzai's demands come just days after the U.S. and Afghanistan began negotiations on a bilateral security agreement to define the U.S. military presence after the coalition's mandate ends in 2014.
Talks were fragile even before the latest sticking point. The chief U.S. negotiator, Amb. James Warlick, visited Kabul last week to kick-start the negotiations, where issues include Kabul's opposition to U.S. soldiers' immunity from Afghan law.
The U.S. has handed over many of the detainees it held at Bagram as of March. But U.S. forces have since continued operations to detain suspected insurgents and have retained custody of them. Afghan officials want all Afghan citizens in American custody handed over to Afghan authorities, and say that their administrative detention without trial at Bagram contradicts Afghan law.
American actions are "a serious breach" of the March agreement, Mr. Karzai said in a statement Monday. Mr. Karzai said he ordered the Afghan minister of defense, the attorney general and the chief Afghan commander of Bagram "to take all required and urgent measures to ensure a full Afghanization of the prison affairs and a complete transfer of its authority."
The U.S. must "immediately release" at least 57 prisoners who have been found innocent by the Afghan courts, said Aimal Faizi, Mr. Karzai's spokesman. A full transfer of the more than 3,000 other prisoners held in Bagram to the Afghan government is also necessary and any more delays would result in further violations of the March agreement, Mr. Faizi said.
The U.S. is wary of transferring these detainees, including some of those who have been found innocent by Afghan courts, U.S. officials say. They say Mr. Karzai's government has already released scores of dangerous Taliban commanders and bomb-makers, including those responsible for killing U.S. troops, as it sought to nudge the Taliban leadership to open peace talks.
"If you want to release folks, there has to be a process. You can't just fling open the doors," said a Western official with knowledge of the U.S. grievances.
The March agreement states that Afghanistan "is to consult with the U.S. before the release, including release prior to indictment, of the transferred detainees." In practice, this rule hasn't always been followed, coalition officials say.
Coalition officials also say the U.S. is allowed to detain suspected "belligerents" during wartime under the laws of war, especially considering that the U.S.-led military's coalition's presence in Afghanistan has been authorized by the United Nations Security Council.
"The United States fully respects the sovereignty of Afghanistan and we are committed to fulfilling the mutual commitments incurred under the memorandum of understanding on detention," said a statement by the U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
The agreement, U.S. forces said, "contains reciprocal commitments to provide for the security of Afghan citizens, the [Afghan security forces] and coalition forces by keeping captured enemy combatants from returning to the battlefield. The United States is working with Afghanistan to discuss the way ahead and we are confident we will succeed."
U.S. officials say that in recent weeks they were privately renegotiating the March agreement with the Afghan government—focusing particularly on the administrative detention concerns—and that they had hoped to reach consensus soon. Monday's statement by Mr. Karzai, they said, blindsided them. —Habib Khan Totakhil and Ziaulhaq Sultani contributed to this article.
Write to Maria Abi-Habib at maria.habib@dowjones.com
French Troops End Afghan Combat Mission
November 20, 2012 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
France ended its last combat mission in Afghanistan on November 20, withdrawing some 400 troops from Kapisa, a strategic province northeast of Kabul.
The troops had been stationed mostly at two bases in Tagab and Nejrab districts since 2003.
Paris has said all French combat soldiers will leave the country by December, two years before the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) led by the United States are due to depart.
Some 2,000 French soldiers will remain in noncombat roles, according to officials, with most due to return home by summer.
In July, the French contingent began an accelerated departure, which had been announced in May by new French President Francois Hollande.
At least 88 French soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan.
The Taliban on November 20 welcomed the withdrawal and said all ISAF forces should follow the French example.
Based on reporting by AFP and dpa
Roadside bomb kills 1 police in W. Afghanistan
FARAH, Afghanistan, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- A roadside bomb struck a police van in the western Farah province, killing a police officer and injuring two others on Tuesday, an official said.
"A roadside bomb planted by Taliban militants on the road leading to Farah airfield was detonated by remote control at 02:05 p.m. local time, leaving a police official dead and injuring two others," deputy to provincial police chief Mohammad Ghous Malyar told Xinhua.
The blast took place near the airstrip and the person killed in the incident is a Taliban former commander named Noor Mohammad Jan who had recently switched side and joined the government, the official added.
Taliban militants have yet to make comment.
13 IEDs defused in eastern Afghanistan: coalition
KABUL, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Afghan forces and the NATO-led coalition troops defused 13 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in restive eastern Afghan provinces within a 24-hour period, the coalition forces confirmed in a press release issued on Tuesday.
The home-made IEDs were neutralized in eastern Ghazni, Khowst, Kunar, Logar and Wardak provinces, the coalition's Regional Command-East (RC-East ) said in the release, adding that the joint forces also detained four suspected insurgents in Khowst and Laghman provinces within the same period of time.
"The detained suspects were transferred to a base for questioning," it said.
The press release said that two insurgents were killed when their IED detonated prematurely in Pul-E Alam district in Logar province some 60 km south of Kabul.
The operations in RC-East are still ongoing, it added.
IEDs used in making suicide vests and roadside bombs has proved a challenge for Afghan and some 100,000 NATO-led forces in the insurgency-hit country, as they are simple but difficult to be detected.
The Taliban insurgents group, which has been waging an insurgency since its regime was toppled by a U.S-led invasion in late 2001, has yet to make comments.
On Monday evening, a policeman was killed and six people including two civilians were wounded when an IED attached to a bicycle went off in northern Balkh province 305 km north of Kabul.
Man's best friend takes on Afghanistan's enemy
AFP By Emal Haidary 20/11/2012
KABUL - As NATO forces gear up to withdraw, Afghans are preparing to counter one of their deadliest enemies using man's best friend: dogs.
At the Mine Detection and Dogs Centre (MDC) a few kilometres from Kabul's presidential palace, it looks like chaos with dogs yelping and crashing playfully into each other in their playground.
A dog handler throws balls and around a dozen puppies streak off in hot pursuit. The dogs catch the balls and proudly fetch them.
But it is not a game -- it is the first step in an 18-month training programme that will transform the dogs into highly skilled mine detectors.
They will then help to save lives in a country where thousands of people have been killed by old landmines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) used by Taliban insurgents.
"Using dogs in Afghanistan, which is one of the most heavily-mined countries in the world, is a very efficient way to detect mines," MDC's training manager Abdul Jabar Baser told AFP.
"Dogs can find mines faster than humans. Dogs can also find explosives around 13 centimetres (five inches) deep in soil. They can find plastic land mines that cannot be discovered by metal detectors."
The centre has around 200 dogs, some of them operational, some under training. Breeding also takes place at the centre.
"The dogs can learn anything you teach them," Baser said.
It is not only old mines left after three decades of war that take a toll, roadside bombs used by the Taliban remain one the biggest killers in Afghanistan.
The militants use as bombs unused artillery shells, explosives in containers such as pressure cookers and devices made from the common fertilizer, ammonium nitrate.
"The mines are made in different countries such as Pakistan, Italy, Russia, China and Iran. There are also NATO's unexploded ordnance that we collect," Baser said.
The US-led NATO force has more than 100,000 troops in Afghanistan, but combat soldiers will withdraw by the end of 2014 and hand responsibility for security to Afghan forces.
According to a recent UN report, in the first six months of 2012, 1,145 Afghan civilians were killed and around 2,000 were wounded, mostly by roadside bombs.
Women and children accounted for about 30 percent of this year's casualties.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) says around 1,800 IED attacks were executed between July and September alone.
"The mines and IEDs still hit between 20 and 30 people daily in different parts of the country," MDC's operations manager Shah Wali Ayubi said.
"There are still a lot of insecure areas where our teams cannot go... we only clear the abandoned IEDs in some parts of the country. We can only have access to those areas after the fighting ends there," he said.
There are more than a dozen organisations and contractors and around 13,000 deminers working to eliminate forgotten mines in Afghanistan.
The MDC also uses heavy machinery and human deminers but dogs are treasured for their powerful sense of smell, and dog teams can clear an area six times faster than humans.
"The best thing about this dog is that he can clear the minefield. Those mines which cannot be identified by machines, the dogs can smell them and find them," trainer Nabiullah said while working with his dog.
The centre, which also trains dogs for the police and army, mostly uses German shepherds and Belgian malinois dogs.
"In northern parts of the country there are old mines, but in southern parts of the country there are more IEDs and newly planted mines," Baser said.
At the centre, the dogs are trained to walk and search for explosives in straight lines. When the dog finds the explosives, it sits, looks at its handler and waits until given the command to return.
The proud dog then gets a ball as a reward and plays while the deminer team marks the spot and removes or detonates the mine.
"We test them every morning, we trust them 100 percent whenever they work. If a dog doesn't work well during training, then we don't use that dog that day but replace it with another one," deminer Mohammad Daud said.
Deminer dogs can work an average of eight years before they retire, when they are sometimes given away as pets.
Funded by international partners, the dog handlers and demining teams are all Afghans.
Since 1989, when the Soviets withdrew after a 10-year occupation, nearly 700,000 mines and more than 15 million explosive left-overs from decades of war have been destroyed, according to United Nations figures.
Hard choices as Afghanistan seeks to exploit mineral riches
AFP 20 November 2012
Huge riches lie buried below the dusty plains and mountains of Afghanistan — both mineral wealth and historical treasures accumulated over thousands of years.
As the country seeks to build a prosperous and peaceful future after more than 30 years of war, it is facing a dilemma between exploiting the resources that can make it rich and preserving its archaeological heritage.
At Mes Aynak, an ancient Buddhist site around 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Kabul, the Afghan government has chosen: in 2007 the China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC) successfully bid for the rights to lease the area for 30 years and exploit an 11.5 million tonne copper ore deposit.
The fourth-century site, home to ancient villages, temples and Buddhist statues, faces destruction as the mine project progresses.
Amid pressure from international donors, authorities required MCC to first pay for an archaeological excavation on the site, where a religious community set up more than 17 centuries ago to exploit the copper.
MCC will spend nearly $30 million by the middle of 2013 for the excavation, according to Philippe Marquis, the director of the French archaeological delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA), which is supervising the dig.
Around 50 archaeologists and 550 workers are involved in the race to excavate the four-square-kilometre site and the results have been striking.
Everywhere houses, temples and barracks are appearing, their walls still in surprisingly good condition, nestled in the beautiful mountain setting.
‘It’s even more important than Pompeii. It’s bigger,’ said Roberta Marziani, an Italian archaeologist working on the site.
Marquis says more than a thousand Buddhist statues have been found, a total which he says is not unusual given Afghanistan’s archaeological wealth.
‘The problem is not finding statues, it’s preserving them. Afghanistan doesn’t have the structures to do that,’ he said.
By the end of next year the dig will be over, the fourth-century town modelled on computer and its physical remains progressively destroyed.
‘Every time I think about this site disappearing, I get angry,’ said Jawed Mohsenzada, the head archaeologist at the site.
But the Mes Aynak mine will earn $320 to $350 million a year for the Afghan government, according to the ministry of mines, employ thousands of workers and indirectly benefit tens of thousands.
‘We are doing our best to protect the past and exploit the copper mines to give Afghanistan an economic future. We have to develop the country, we have no other choice,’ said Mossadeq Khalili, the deputy culture minister.
Afghanistan is counting on its mineral wealth — valued at more than $1 trillion by US experts — for its economic and political development, but attracting investment means ensuring security.
Two years out from the departure of NATO combat troops this is still a distant prospect, and at Mes Aynak dozens of deminers go out each day to clear the muddy road leading to the site.
Despite a deployment of 2,000 police officers on the site, which is surrounded by mesh fencing, Taleban rockets rained down on the Chinese camp this summer, forcing MCC’s expatriate workers to leave.
Of 300 Chinese workers, only around 30 remain, according to one of the archaeologists.
There are fears the violence may prompt MCC to exit, though the idea is rejected by Jawad Omar, the spokesman for the ministry of mines, who says 70 percent of the Chinese workers came back to Afghanistan. The company could not be reached for comment by AFP.
On the ground, the mining work is not moving forward. Four drilling machines have remained motionless for a month and work to build a railway and power plant, promised by MCC and essential for the mine, is at a standstill.
‘We are taking part in a poker game as we carve up the world’s natural resources. Here this means taking an option on a mine, which you can exploit or keep for later,’ once the security situation improves, said a western diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
In this sense ‘the Chinese are in the process of negotiating with everyone to make sure everything works out’ in the long run, the diplomat said, hinting that the Chinese had consulted the Taleban, who would clearly have an interest in Afghanistan’s mineral wealth if they returned to power.
Four U.S. Men Charged in Alleged Terror Plot
November 20, 2012 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
The FBI says four Americans have been charged with plotting to join the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and conduct "violent jihad."
An FBI statement late on November 19 said the three of the four had undertaken preliminary training at firearms and paintball centers in southern California.
The charges include "conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim, or injure persons and damage property in a foreign country."
The men have also been charged with plotting to kill U.S. soldiers and American citizens. Online conversations by some of the men were included in the evidence against them.
The four suspects, Ralph Deleon, Miguel Alejandro, Santana Vidriales, and Arifeen David Gojali, were arrested on November 16 and appeared in court outside Los Angeles three days later.
A fifth suspect, Sohiel Omar Kabir, is in custody in Afghanistan.
If convicted, they face up to 15 years in prison.
Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters
Russia eyes rebirth in classrooms of former foe Afghanistan
Reuters By Amie Ferris-Rotman November 19, 2012
KABUL - Russian culture and language are making a surprising comeback in Afghanistan, where the Soviets fought a disastrous decade-long war, as Moscow vies to regain influence ahead of the planned withdrawal of foreign troops.
Bulldozers are clearing the way for a sparkling Russian cultural center in Kabul, to replace its behemoth, Soviet-era predecessor which for many came to symbolize Moscow's war and its humiliating 1989 defeat that cost 15,000 Soviet lives. "We are here in the region, and we will be in the future. And to have good, friendly, neighborly relations you must have some cultural component to it," Russia's envoy to Kabul, Andrey Avetisyan, told Reuters of the decision to rebuild the center.
Moscow fears the exit of most NATO-led troops by the end of 2014 will lead to a dangerous power vacuum south of ex-Soviet Central Asia's borders, threatening its own security and allowing for a larger influx of heroin.
The new center will teach Russian language, singing, dancing and handicrafts and will boast a concert hall, similar to the one built in 1983.
Its rebuild is reminiscent of Soviet influence in Afghanistan before the 1979 invasion, when they heavily supported education and the arts.
It also coincides with renewed interest by Afghans in the Russian language, who see it as increasingly useful in their country's changing landscape amid the emergence of new regional powers.
"Demand for the Russian language is growing. It is more widely spoken in Afghanistan than five years ago," Avetisyan said, adding: "Foreign advisers and experts are not going to be here forever. NATO, the European Union, they will all go".
When asked when it would open, he chuckled and said: "Everything is about the year 2014".
The center replaces a dilapidated, bullet-ridden shell of a building that became home to scores of heroin addicts before the Russians finally demolished it several months ago at the behest of Kabul authorities, who complained it "ruined the skyline", Avetisyan said.
Russian engineers from state company Spetstroi Rossii will oversee the project, which has been contracted by the Russian government. It will employ Afghan construction firms.
MORE RUSSIAN STUDENTS
Though Afghanistan was devastated by the Soviet Union's war here, which by some estimates killed millions and destroyed its once-thriving agriculture, both sides have started to take a more upbeat view of their relationship, helping Moscow gain a bigger role.
At the sprawling and leafy Kabul University, the country's largest, demand is growing for degrees in Russian language and literature.
"Our students are too young to worry about the past. Instead they see Russian as a bridge to social and economic opportunities," said Mohammad Rahim Banaizada, one of six professors in its Russian department.
Around 220 students are currently studying for four year degrees in Russian, almost double that of five years ago, Banaizada told Reuters beside framed pictures of Russian President Vladimir Putin with the Afghan leader Hamid Karzai.
They hung next to copies of typed Cyrillic letters from Afghan King Amanullah Khan in 1919 to Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union, affirming the countries' friendly ties two years after the Bolsheviks swept to power.
"Russia is our neighbor with a culture we love. Things were good when they were here," said third-year student Sharifullah, 22, who gave only his first name.
The cultural center is the first of a series of ambitious Russian construction projects in Afghanistan. Most are aimed at reinforcing stability in a country where Russia believes Washington is at risk of repeating its own mistakes.
After the Soviets rushed out, financial aid dried up and the Afghan communist government collapsed, leading to infighting between warlords and a vicious civil war that paved the way for the Taliban's rise to power in 1996.
(Editing by Jonathan Thatcher)
Afghan Senators Concerned Over Release of Taliban Prisoners
TOLOnews.com By Saleha Soadat Monday, 19 November 2012
Afghan senators have criticised the release of Taliban prisoners from Pakistan and questioned its benefit toward peace talks given that the Taliban continues to officially dismiss any negotiations with the Afghan government.
Senators on Sunday said that the Taliban have shown no preparation to talk, rather they have reacted to it by carrying out suicide attacks and planting hidden bombs in civilian areas.
"What kind of peace it is when the Taliban continue to do suicide attacks? As you saw, a number of children and women were killed in Nimroz as the result of the mines placed by the Taliban," senator Abdulhanan Haqyoon said.
"Unfortunately, the process of the peace talks is very passive. The High Peace Council has always tried to deal with the Taliban peacefully but they have shown no signs of being prepared to negotiate," the deputy speaker of the Senate Mohammed Alam Izadyar said.
Pakistan released at least nine prisoners of the former Taliban regime on Afghanistan's request last week as part of new efforts to show Pakistan's support for the peace process.
"If the Taliban seek peace, why don't they have a cease fire? There are these principles all over the world," another senator Najiba Hussaini said.
The senators criticised the release which happened even as civilians are being killed by roadside bombs planted by the Taliban, such as the one in Farah province on Friday which killed around 15 civilians, most of them children and women.
Their comments come as members of the Taliban leadership council, known as the Quetta Shura, have reportedly reviewed the Afghan peace process just days after the Pakistani government released the Taliban officials.
A member of the Shura, who didn't want to be named, told the Pakistani daily The Nation that the Taliban leadership council has welcomed new efforts by the Afghan and Pakistani governments.
Combating Terrorism is Among America's Highest Priorities: US Envoy
TOLOnews.com Monday, 19 November 2012
The threat of terrorism is one of the greatest concerns of the United States and underscores the need for the bilateral security agreement with Afghanistan, US Envoy James Warlick told TOLOnews.
The terrorist threat involves the whole world and is the reason for the country's efforts in Afghanistan, the US Ambassador to Afghanistan and Pakistan said in an exclusive interview.
"This is a challenge for the entire international community. It's not just this region or this country. It's one that we all face. It's one of the highest priorities that we have in the United States, the terrorist threat that we face," he said.
He would not be drawn into answering a question on whether the Taliban should be considered a terrorist network.
"It's not good to get into definitions. What we want to do is to address issues where there is a threat to our values, to peace and stability, and I think what we need to do is to work together on that," he said.
Warlick is hopeful that the transparency of the bilateral security agreement between Afghanistan and America - currently being negotiated - will allay the fears of regional countries.
"We want to make this process as transparent as possible. The agreement we want to be a public one so that no one will feel threatened by it. As we negotiate this together, we want this to be information that is available. Not inside the negotiating room, but the objectives of the agreement. So Afghanistan's neighbors and no one will be under some misunderstanding," he said.
He declined to discuss what the US was looking for in the agreement, saying it was mutually beneficial to both nations and reassured that the US was not looking to retain permanent military bases in Afghanistan.
On the question of why the US would want to be in Afghanistan post 2014 at all, Warlick said a large investment has already been made.
"We've been here more than one decade... We've invested a lot here. I don't just mean financial resources, but I mean human resources. So that's why we want this kind of a partnership. And we're not only talking about security partnership. We want to continue a strategic partnership on the economy, on government institutions, rule of law," he said.
"We don't want that to come to an end. We believe this is a partnership that should continue into the future," he added.
He believes, however, that Afghanistan is headed in the right direction.
"Not everything is going to be perfect [after 2014]. But what we're seeing is the trend line is in the right direction. You're going to have elections here on April 5, 2014. We look forward, as do all Afghans, that these elections will be credible and will lay the basis for future democracy," he said.
Mujahedeen Army Goes Against Afghanistan's Laws: Faizi
TOLOnews.com By Karim Amini Monday, 19 November 2012
The Afghan government will not allow any armed group to stand alongside the national security forces, President Hamid Karzai's spokesman said on Monday, a clear sign that it will not support the move of the Jihadi Council to form a private army.
Aimal Faizi said the last speeches of the Minister of Energy and Water and Jihadi Council leader Mohammad Ismail Khan on the creation of armed groups is not acceptable for the government.
Ismail Khan had said that he plans to form a special militia unit from former Mujahedeen leaders and fighters to help bring more security to the country. He also claimed to have the support of Karzai for this.
But Faizi said the decision went against Afghanistan's Laws.
"About Ismail Khan's speeches, the government does not accept any armed group under any name. The speeches do not represent government policies," he said.
"The Afghan people have already experienced such groups once, and that was not pleasant," he added.
Faizi also noted in the press briefing that Pakistan had thrown its support behind the peace process with its prisoner release as requested by Afghanistan, and he urged the Taliban to cut any ties with Al Qaeda.
"Pakistan has asked all the armed opposition groups of the Afghan government to cut ties with Al Qaeda and come to the negotiation table with Afghanistan. It is hopeful," he said.
The spokesman added that it was the first time that Pakistan has replied to Afghanistan's requests for cooperation and there were high hopes for the future of the peace process.
Power Cuts to Increase If Overload Continues: Brishna
TOLOnews.com By Shahla Murtazaie Monday, 19 November 2012
Power cuts in Kabul will only increase if the power overload of the Kabul residents continues through the winter season, Kabul's main supplier Brishna Electricity said Monday.
Head of Kabul Brishna Abdul Wakil Naseri said that the residents of Kabul will remain without power for multiple hours a day during winter if they do not reduce their power usage.
"If the people do not stop using electric heaters in their homes, we will have no choice but to increase the power cuts. The residents of Kabul may spend hours without electricity," Naseri said.
He stressed that currently, Naghlo, Mahipar and Sorobi power plants provide 80 Megawatts of electricity to Kabul while 260 megawatts is being imported from Uzbekistan.
He believes that if the residents decrease their power usage between 5:00pm and 10:00pm - considered to be the peak hours - there will be no power cuts.
Meanwhile, other sources of fuel for heating such as wood and kerosene have increased recently as the winter season closes in.
www.afghanistannewscenter.com
Robert Bales shooting trial puts thorny issue of US troop immunity centre stage, with Hamid Karzai hoping to wring tough concessions
Guardian.co.uk By Emma Graham-Harrison Monday 19 November 2012
Kabul - Afghanistan and the US have opened talks to keep American troops in the country after most Nato forces go home in 2014, but the thorny question of immunity for American soldiers, which in effect ended the US role in Iraq last year, is likely to prove a stumbling block.
The issue has been thrown into sharp relief by the Seattle trial of the US army staff sergeant Robert Bales, who is accused of the massacring 16 Afghan civilians, mostly women and children, during a shooting spree at their homes in March. US prosecutors are seeking the death penalty but many Afghans, including some of the victims' relatives, want to see him brought before one of their own courts.
"Immunity [for US soldiers] is going to be challenging," said one western official as talks on the bilateral security agreement started late last week. The issue has been set aside in early negotiations, US and Afghan officials said, because the intensity of the clash between Washington's desire to protect its soldiers and the Afghan government's desire to control trial and punishment of any future offenders.
"To be frank, I do not see a way around this. Neither side looks as if they would budge," said Thomas Ruttig, director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network. "Particularly for the US, this (waiving immunity) would be unprecedented. The Afghan government might use it to get other concessions out of the US, but I am not sure what they are aiming at."
The Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, a tough negotiator who has tended to win concessions, said last month the question of protections for US soldiers could be a problem in talks. "Afghanistan wants a strategic pact with US but will seriously consider the red lines," said his spokesman, Aimal Faizi. "The most important issue for Afghanistan is its national sovereignty."
Karzai is possibly betting that the US needs Afghan bases to strike at radical groups hiding along the lawless, mountainous border with Pakistan, and to help peer into Iran's eastern regions. Al-Qaida has made a comeback in Afghanistan, despite the death of its former leader, Osama bin Laden, the commander of US and Nato forces, General John Allen, admitted recently. "We do not want al-Qaida to feel as though [the group] can put down roots here," he told CBS news
Even so, the US is far readier to walk away from Afghanistan than it once was, as the domestic economy sputters and interest in the war fades among voters. The Afghan government cannot survive without US financial and military support in some form, western diplomats and officials have said, and Karzai has not yet fully grasped the shift in dynamics.
There is little question that without help Kabul would struggle. Up to 90% of the national budget is financed by foreign aid, and the Afghan police and army still lack vital skills, from bomb-disposal teams, intelligence, and air support to medical care for injured soldiers.
However, Karzai speaks for many Afghans who would prefer US cash to troops, and even argue that a lasting foreign military presence could give insurgents an excuse to dodge peace talks that are viewed by many as the best hope for ending decades of conflict.
"If the foreigners take home their forces, there will be no reason for the Taliban to send people in the name of jihad," said Allah Gul Mujahed, a conservative member of parliament from the capital, Kabul, who was once with the mujahideen fighting Soviet forces.
Many Afghans were unhappy that Bales had been taken to America and would not accept a deal that enshrined similar protections, he added. "We want everything to be under Afghan law."
Additional reporting by Mokhtar Amiri
Opium Cultivation Rises in Afghanistan
VOA News November 20, 2012
ISLAMABAD — A report Tuesday from the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said the amount of Afghan farmland planted with opium poppies has increased by nearly 20 percent this year.
Record high prices for opium combined with corruption and a lack of security is encouraging farmers around the country to turn again to the illegal but high-value crop.
The figures for 2012 are alarming, said Jean-Luc Lemahieu, head of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.
"An increase of 18 percent is a serious alarm signal, it's a wake up call," he said. "The gains made over the last years have been undone. We are again with the kind of figures in parallel to the high peaks of 2008, 2007, 2006. Now this country, working towards transition, can ill afford this."
Ninety-five percent of the poppy cultivation is taking place in western and southern Afghanistan, areas affected by fighting with the Taliban.
Lemahieu said the insurgency is one of the main beneficiaries of the drug trade. But he also blames corruption, the lack of rule of law, local conflicts and the government's apparent lack of interest in dealing with the problem.
Despite years of eradication efforts, the Afghan Interior Ministry finally made poppy eradication one of its top ten priorities just three days ago.
"It took too long," Lemahieu said. "And this hesitation is what is problematic to us."
According to the United Nations, although poppy growing has increased and is expected to go up next season, overall production of opium is down. But the drop is mainly because of bad weather and plant disease.
Muzamel Shinwari, Afghanistan's deputy minister for trade, said the country has been trying to diversify its exports to give farmers an alternative.
"The only product that can counter the illegal export of drugs is saffron, and we are focusing on that," Shinwari said. "It is quite expensive and there is a good market."
Seventeen out of Afghanistan's 34 provinces have been declared poppy-free.
Karzai Orders Afghan Forces to Take Control of American-Built Prison
New York Times By ROD NORDLAND November 19, 2012
KABUL, Afghanistan - President Hamid Karzai ordered Afghan forces to take control of the American-built Bagram Prison and accused American officials of violating an agreement to fully transfer the facility to the Afghans, according to a statement from his office on Monday.
The move came after what Mr. Karzai said was the expiration of a two-month grace period, agreed to by President Obama, to complete the transfer of the prison at Bagram Air Base.
At issue in particular are 57 prisoners held there who had been acquitted by the Afghan courts but who have been held by American officials at the prison for more than a month in defiance of release orders, Aimal Faizi, the spokesman for President Karzai, said in an interview.
Afghan officials were also concerned about the status of new detainees being captured by American troops. The Afghans feel those detainees should be transferred to their control under the deal signed by the two countries this year.
Mr. Faizi said hundreds of new prisoners were being held by American authorities in a closed-off section of Bagram Prison, which the American military calls the Detention Facility in Parwan. American forces, mainly Special Operations troops carrying out night raids, have been arresting more than 100 suspected insurgents a month, Afghan officials said.
“We expect the Americans to respect the agreement according to the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries,” Mr. Faizi said.
The American military did not respond to specific Afghan complaints, but United States Forces-Afghanistan released a statement saying, “The United States fully respects the sovereignty of Afghanistan, and we are committed to fulfilling the mutual obligations incurred under the Memorandum of Understanding on Detentions.”
American officials have said the agreement left open to further negotiation how to handle new battlefield detainees. Those negotiations have stalled, however, over disputes about prisoners from before whom the Americans have refused to let go.
Tensions over detainee transfers have been on the front burner since the memo of understanding was signed in March, setting a six-month timeline for full transfer of Parwan to Afghan authority. That deadline lapsed with central issues still unresolved, leading to a two-month extension agreed to in a videoconference between Mr. Karzai and Mr. Obama in September.
The disagreement now threatens to complicate an even larger issue: the two countries began negotiations last week on a status of forces agreement that would govern any American military presence remaining in Afghanistan after 2014.
In the statement by Mr. Karzai’s office on Monday, he was quoted as saying the Americans were in “serious breach” of the prison transfer agreement and ordered Afghan officials to take “urgent measures to ensure a full Afghanization of the prison affairs and a complete transfer of its authority.”
American officials, however, say it is not so simple. One official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the issue’s sensitivity, said: “It’s an issue of sovereignty for the government of Afghanistan, and to General Allen it’s a matter of security for the coalition troops. You can’t just bring these guys in and let them go.” Gen. John R. Allen is the departing commander of American and NATO troops here.
The American military’s statement maintained that the agreement “contains reciprocal commitments to provide for the security of Afghan citizens, the A.N.S.F. and coalition forces by keeping captured enemy combatants from returning to the battlefield.” It added that the military was confident of working out a solution with Afghanistan.
Mr. Faizi said there would not immediately be a change in control over the Bagram facility, despite the Afghan president’s strongly worded statement. He said Afghan officials would hold discussions with American officials and report back to Mr. Karzai in the next few days about how to carry out his order. After that, Mr. Karzai would announce his government’s next steps.
Bagram Prison, which can hold more than 3,000 detainees, lies within Bagram Air Base and is surrounded by American checkpoints, and is heavily staffed by American guards.
Rights advocates welcomed Mr. Karzai’s move. Tina Foster, the executive director of the International Justice Network, who represents some Bagram detainees, met recently with Afghan officials to try to visit her clients in the prison. The Afghans approved the visits, but the United States military blocked them, she said.
“When we met with Karzai’s staff it was clear that the Afghans are tired of being treated like servants in their own country,” Ms. Foster said. “Symbolic gestures are not going to cut it anymore. They want the keys to the prison, and the ability to determine the fates of the prisoners held there.”
Afghanistan Says U.S. Broke Pact on Prisons
Wall Street Journal
By MARIA ABI-HABIB November 19, 2012
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai accused the U.S. on Monday of violating an agreement on transferring the country's main U.S. prison to Afghan control, demanding that Afghanistan take over the facility immediately and that many insurgent suspects be freed.
Western officials say Kabul is trying to renegotiate key aspects of the March deal, under which the Afghan government took control of most detainees in the prison, the Bagram detention center. Mr. Karzai's demands come just days after the U.S. and Afghanistan began negotiations on a bilateral security agreement to define the U.S. military presence after the coalition's mandate ends in 2014.
Talks were fragile even before the latest sticking point. The chief U.S. negotiator, Amb. James Warlick, visited Kabul last week to kick-start the negotiations, where issues include Kabul's opposition to U.S. soldiers' immunity from Afghan law.
The U.S. has handed over many of the detainees it held at Bagram as of March. But U.S. forces have since continued operations to detain suspected insurgents and have retained custody of them. Afghan officials want all Afghan citizens in American custody handed over to Afghan authorities, and say that their administrative detention without trial at Bagram contradicts Afghan law.
American actions are "a serious breach" of the March agreement, Mr. Karzai said in a statement Monday. Mr. Karzai said he ordered the Afghan minister of defense, the attorney general and the chief Afghan commander of Bagram "to take all required and urgent measures to ensure a full Afghanization of the prison affairs and a complete transfer of its authority."
The U.S. must "immediately release" at least 57 prisoners who have been found innocent by the Afghan courts, said Aimal Faizi, Mr. Karzai's spokesman. A full transfer of the more than 3,000 other prisoners held in Bagram to the Afghan government is also necessary and any more delays would result in further violations of the March agreement, Mr. Faizi said.
The U.S. is wary of transferring these detainees, including some of those who have been found innocent by Afghan courts, U.S. officials say. They say Mr. Karzai's government has already released scores of dangerous Taliban commanders and bomb-makers, including those responsible for killing U.S. troops, as it sought to nudge the Taliban leadership to open peace talks.
"If you want to release folks, there has to be a process. You can't just fling open the doors," said a Western official with knowledge of the U.S. grievances.
The March agreement states that Afghanistan "is to consult with the U.S. before the release, including release prior to indictment, of the transferred detainees." In practice, this rule hasn't always been followed, coalition officials say.
Coalition officials also say the U.S. is allowed to detain suspected "belligerents" during wartime under the laws of war, especially considering that the U.S.-led military's coalition's presence in Afghanistan has been authorized by the United Nations Security Council.
"The United States fully respects the sovereignty of Afghanistan and we are committed to fulfilling the mutual commitments incurred under the memorandum of understanding on detention," said a statement by the U.S. forces in Afghanistan.
The agreement, U.S. forces said, "contains reciprocal commitments to provide for the security of Afghan citizens, the [Afghan security forces] and coalition forces by keeping captured enemy combatants from returning to the battlefield. The United States is working with Afghanistan to discuss the way ahead and we are confident we will succeed."
U.S. officials say that in recent weeks they were privately renegotiating the March agreement with the Afghan government—focusing particularly on the administrative detention concerns—and that they had hoped to reach consensus soon. Monday's statement by Mr. Karzai, they said, blindsided them. —Habib Khan Totakhil and Ziaulhaq Sultani contributed to this article.
Write to Maria Abi-Habib at maria.habib@dowjones.com
French Troops End Afghan Combat Mission
November 20, 2012 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
France ended its last combat mission in Afghanistan on November 20, withdrawing some 400 troops from Kapisa, a strategic province northeast of Kabul.
The troops had been stationed mostly at two bases in Tagab and Nejrab districts since 2003.
Paris has said all French combat soldiers will leave the country by December, two years before the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) led by the United States are due to depart.
Some 2,000 French soldiers will remain in noncombat roles, according to officials, with most due to return home by summer.
In July, the French contingent began an accelerated departure, which had been announced in May by new French President Francois Hollande.
At least 88 French soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan.
The Taliban on November 20 welcomed the withdrawal and said all ISAF forces should follow the French example.
Based on reporting by AFP and dpa
Roadside bomb kills 1 police in W. Afghanistan
FARAH, Afghanistan, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- A roadside bomb struck a police van in the western Farah province, killing a police officer and injuring two others on Tuesday, an official said.
"A roadside bomb planted by Taliban militants on the road leading to Farah airfield was detonated by remote control at 02:05 p.m. local time, leaving a police official dead and injuring two others," deputy to provincial police chief Mohammad Ghous Malyar told Xinhua.
The blast took place near the airstrip and the person killed in the incident is a Taliban former commander named Noor Mohammad Jan who had recently switched side and joined the government, the official added.
Taliban militants have yet to make comment.
13 IEDs defused in eastern Afghanistan: coalition
KABUL, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Afghan forces and the NATO-led coalition troops defused 13 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in restive eastern Afghan provinces within a 24-hour period, the coalition forces confirmed in a press release issued on Tuesday.
The home-made IEDs were neutralized in eastern Ghazni, Khowst, Kunar, Logar and Wardak provinces, the coalition's Regional Command-East (RC-East ) said in the release, adding that the joint forces also detained four suspected insurgents in Khowst and Laghman provinces within the same period of time.
"The detained suspects were transferred to a base for questioning," it said.
The press release said that two insurgents were killed when their IED detonated prematurely in Pul-E Alam district in Logar province some 60 km south of Kabul.
The operations in RC-East are still ongoing, it added.
IEDs used in making suicide vests and roadside bombs has proved a challenge for Afghan and some 100,000 NATO-led forces in the insurgency-hit country, as they are simple but difficult to be detected.
The Taliban insurgents group, which has been waging an insurgency since its regime was toppled by a U.S-led invasion in late 2001, has yet to make comments.
On Monday evening, a policeman was killed and six people including two civilians were wounded when an IED attached to a bicycle went off in northern Balkh province 305 km north of Kabul.
Man's best friend takes on Afghanistan's enemy
AFP By Emal Haidary 20/11/2012
KABUL - As NATO forces gear up to withdraw, Afghans are preparing to counter one of their deadliest enemies using man's best friend: dogs.
At the Mine Detection and Dogs Centre (MDC) a few kilometres from Kabul's presidential palace, it looks like chaos with dogs yelping and crashing playfully into each other in their playground.
A dog handler throws balls and around a dozen puppies streak off in hot pursuit. The dogs catch the balls and proudly fetch them.
But it is not a game -- it is the first step in an 18-month training programme that will transform the dogs into highly skilled mine detectors.
They will then help to save lives in a country where thousands of people have been killed by old landmines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) used by Taliban insurgents.
"Using dogs in Afghanistan, which is one of the most heavily-mined countries in the world, is a very efficient way to detect mines," MDC's training manager Abdul Jabar Baser told AFP.
"Dogs can find mines faster than humans. Dogs can also find explosives around 13 centimetres (five inches) deep in soil. They can find plastic land mines that cannot be discovered by metal detectors."
The centre has around 200 dogs, some of them operational, some under training. Breeding also takes place at the centre.
"The dogs can learn anything you teach them," Baser said.
It is not only old mines left after three decades of war that take a toll, roadside bombs used by the Taliban remain one the biggest killers in Afghanistan.
The militants use as bombs unused artillery shells, explosives in containers such as pressure cookers and devices made from the common fertilizer, ammonium nitrate.
"The mines are made in different countries such as Pakistan, Italy, Russia, China and Iran. There are also NATO's unexploded ordnance that we collect," Baser said.
The US-led NATO force has more than 100,000 troops in Afghanistan, but combat soldiers will withdraw by the end of 2014 and hand responsibility for security to Afghan forces.
According to a recent UN report, in the first six months of 2012, 1,145 Afghan civilians were killed and around 2,000 were wounded, mostly by roadside bombs.
Women and children accounted for about 30 percent of this year's casualties.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) says around 1,800 IED attacks were executed between July and September alone.
"The mines and IEDs still hit between 20 and 30 people daily in different parts of the country," MDC's operations manager Shah Wali Ayubi said.
"There are still a lot of insecure areas where our teams cannot go... we only clear the abandoned IEDs in some parts of the country. We can only have access to those areas after the fighting ends there," he said.
There are more than a dozen organisations and contractors and around 13,000 deminers working to eliminate forgotten mines in Afghanistan.
The MDC also uses heavy machinery and human deminers but dogs are treasured for their powerful sense of smell, and dog teams can clear an area six times faster than humans.
"The best thing about this dog is that he can clear the minefield. Those mines which cannot be identified by machines, the dogs can smell them and find them," trainer Nabiullah said while working with his dog.
The centre, which also trains dogs for the police and army, mostly uses German shepherds and Belgian malinois dogs.
"In northern parts of the country there are old mines, but in southern parts of the country there are more IEDs and newly planted mines," Baser said.
At the centre, the dogs are trained to walk and search for explosives in straight lines. When the dog finds the explosives, it sits, looks at its handler and waits until given the command to return.
The proud dog then gets a ball as a reward and plays while the deminer team marks the spot and removes or detonates the mine.
"We test them every morning, we trust them 100 percent whenever they work. If a dog doesn't work well during training, then we don't use that dog that day but replace it with another one," deminer Mohammad Daud said.
Deminer dogs can work an average of eight years before they retire, when they are sometimes given away as pets.
Funded by international partners, the dog handlers and demining teams are all Afghans.
Since 1989, when the Soviets withdrew after a 10-year occupation, nearly 700,000 mines and more than 15 million explosive left-overs from decades of war have been destroyed, according to United Nations figures.
Hard choices as Afghanistan seeks to exploit mineral riches
AFP 20 November 2012
Huge riches lie buried below the dusty plains and mountains of Afghanistan — both mineral wealth and historical treasures accumulated over thousands of years.
As the country seeks to build a prosperous and peaceful future after more than 30 years of war, it is facing a dilemma between exploiting the resources that can make it rich and preserving its archaeological heritage.
At Mes Aynak, an ancient Buddhist site around 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Kabul, the Afghan government has chosen: in 2007 the China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC) successfully bid for the rights to lease the area for 30 years and exploit an 11.5 million tonne copper ore deposit.
The fourth-century site, home to ancient villages, temples and Buddhist statues, faces destruction as the mine project progresses.
Amid pressure from international donors, authorities required MCC to first pay for an archaeological excavation on the site, where a religious community set up more than 17 centuries ago to exploit the copper.
MCC will spend nearly $30 million by the middle of 2013 for the excavation, according to Philippe Marquis, the director of the French archaeological delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA), which is supervising the dig.
Around 50 archaeologists and 550 workers are involved in the race to excavate the four-square-kilometre site and the results have been striking.
Everywhere houses, temples and barracks are appearing, their walls still in surprisingly good condition, nestled in the beautiful mountain setting.
‘It’s even more important than Pompeii. It’s bigger,’ said Roberta Marziani, an Italian archaeologist working on the site.
Marquis says more than a thousand Buddhist statues have been found, a total which he says is not unusual given Afghanistan’s archaeological wealth.
‘The problem is not finding statues, it’s preserving them. Afghanistan doesn’t have the structures to do that,’ he said.
By the end of next year the dig will be over, the fourth-century town modelled on computer and its physical remains progressively destroyed.
‘Every time I think about this site disappearing, I get angry,’ said Jawed Mohsenzada, the head archaeologist at the site.
But the Mes Aynak mine will earn $320 to $350 million a year for the Afghan government, according to the ministry of mines, employ thousands of workers and indirectly benefit tens of thousands.
‘We are doing our best to protect the past and exploit the copper mines to give Afghanistan an economic future. We have to develop the country, we have no other choice,’ said Mossadeq Khalili, the deputy culture minister.
Afghanistan is counting on its mineral wealth — valued at more than $1 trillion by US experts — for its economic and political development, but attracting investment means ensuring security.
Two years out from the departure of NATO combat troops this is still a distant prospect, and at Mes Aynak dozens of deminers go out each day to clear the muddy road leading to the site.
Despite a deployment of 2,000 police officers on the site, which is surrounded by mesh fencing, Taleban rockets rained down on the Chinese camp this summer, forcing MCC’s expatriate workers to leave.
Of 300 Chinese workers, only around 30 remain, according to one of the archaeologists.
There are fears the violence may prompt MCC to exit, though the idea is rejected by Jawad Omar, the spokesman for the ministry of mines, who says 70 percent of the Chinese workers came back to Afghanistan. The company could not be reached for comment by AFP.
On the ground, the mining work is not moving forward. Four drilling machines have remained motionless for a month and work to build a railway and power plant, promised by MCC and essential for the mine, is at a standstill.
‘We are taking part in a poker game as we carve up the world’s natural resources. Here this means taking an option on a mine, which you can exploit or keep for later,’ once the security situation improves, said a western diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
In this sense ‘the Chinese are in the process of negotiating with everyone to make sure everything works out’ in the long run, the diplomat said, hinting that the Chinese had consulted the Taleban, who would clearly have an interest in Afghanistan’s mineral wealth if they returned to power.
Four U.S. Men Charged in Alleged Terror Plot
November 20, 2012 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
The FBI says four Americans have been charged with plotting to join the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and conduct "violent jihad."
An FBI statement late on November 19 said the three of the four had undertaken preliminary training at firearms and paintball centers in southern California.
The charges include "conspiracy to kill, kidnap, maim, or injure persons and damage property in a foreign country."
The men have also been charged with plotting to kill U.S. soldiers and American citizens. Online conversations by some of the men were included in the evidence against them.
The four suspects, Ralph Deleon, Miguel Alejandro, Santana Vidriales, and Arifeen David Gojali, were arrested on November 16 and appeared in court outside Los Angeles three days later.
A fifth suspect, Sohiel Omar Kabir, is in custody in Afghanistan.
If convicted, they face up to 15 years in prison.
Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters
Russia eyes rebirth in classrooms of former foe Afghanistan
Reuters By Amie Ferris-Rotman November 19, 2012
KABUL - Russian culture and language are making a surprising comeback in Afghanistan, where the Soviets fought a disastrous decade-long war, as Moscow vies to regain influence ahead of the planned withdrawal of foreign troops.
Bulldozers are clearing the way for a sparkling Russian cultural center in Kabul, to replace its behemoth, Soviet-era predecessor which for many came to symbolize Moscow's war and its humiliating 1989 defeat that cost 15,000 Soviet lives. "We are here in the region, and we will be in the future. And to have good, friendly, neighborly relations you must have some cultural component to it," Russia's envoy to Kabul, Andrey Avetisyan, told Reuters of the decision to rebuild the center.
Moscow fears the exit of most NATO-led troops by the end of 2014 will lead to a dangerous power vacuum south of ex-Soviet Central Asia's borders, threatening its own security and allowing for a larger influx of heroin.
The new center will teach Russian language, singing, dancing and handicrafts and will boast a concert hall, similar to the one built in 1983.
Its rebuild is reminiscent of Soviet influence in Afghanistan before the 1979 invasion, when they heavily supported education and the arts.
It also coincides with renewed interest by Afghans in the Russian language, who see it as increasingly useful in their country's changing landscape amid the emergence of new regional powers.
"Demand for the Russian language is growing. It is more widely spoken in Afghanistan than five years ago," Avetisyan said, adding: "Foreign advisers and experts are not going to be here forever. NATO, the European Union, they will all go".
When asked when it would open, he chuckled and said: "Everything is about the year 2014".
The center replaces a dilapidated, bullet-ridden shell of a building that became home to scores of heroin addicts before the Russians finally demolished it several months ago at the behest of Kabul authorities, who complained it "ruined the skyline", Avetisyan said.
Russian engineers from state company Spetstroi Rossii will oversee the project, which has been contracted by the Russian government. It will employ Afghan construction firms.
MORE RUSSIAN STUDENTS
Though Afghanistan was devastated by the Soviet Union's war here, which by some estimates killed millions and destroyed its once-thriving agriculture, both sides have started to take a more upbeat view of their relationship, helping Moscow gain a bigger role.
At the sprawling and leafy Kabul University, the country's largest, demand is growing for degrees in Russian language and literature.
"Our students are too young to worry about the past. Instead they see Russian as a bridge to social and economic opportunities," said Mohammad Rahim Banaizada, one of six professors in its Russian department.
Around 220 students are currently studying for four year degrees in Russian, almost double that of five years ago, Banaizada told Reuters beside framed pictures of Russian President Vladimir Putin with the Afghan leader Hamid Karzai.
They hung next to copies of typed Cyrillic letters from Afghan King Amanullah Khan in 1919 to Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union, affirming the countries' friendly ties two years after the Bolsheviks swept to power.
"Russia is our neighbor with a culture we love. Things were good when they were here," said third-year student Sharifullah, 22, who gave only his first name.
The cultural center is the first of a series of ambitious Russian construction projects in Afghanistan. Most are aimed at reinforcing stability in a country where Russia believes Washington is at risk of repeating its own mistakes.
After the Soviets rushed out, financial aid dried up and the Afghan communist government collapsed, leading to infighting between warlords and a vicious civil war that paved the way for the Taliban's rise to power in 1996.
(Editing by Jonathan Thatcher)
Afghan Senators Concerned Over Release of Taliban Prisoners
TOLOnews.com By Saleha Soadat Monday, 19 November 2012
Afghan senators have criticised the release of Taliban prisoners from Pakistan and questioned its benefit toward peace talks given that the Taliban continues to officially dismiss any negotiations with the Afghan government.
Senators on Sunday said that the Taliban have shown no preparation to talk, rather they have reacted to it by carrying out suicide attacks and planting hidden bombs in civilian areas.
"What kind of peace it is when the Taliban continue to do suicide attacks? As you saw, a number of children and women were killed in Nimroz as the result of the mines placed by the Taliban," senator Abdulhanan Haqyoon said.
"Unfortunately, the process of the peace talks is very passive. The High Peace Council has always tried to deal with the Taliban peacefully but they have shown no signs of being prepared to negotiate," the deputy speaker of the Senate Mohammed Alam Izadyar said.
Pakistan released at least nine prisoners of the former Taliban regime on Afghanistan's request last week as part of new efforts to show Pakistan's support for the peace process.
"If the Taliban seek peace, why don't they have a cease fire? There are these principles all over the world," another senator Najiba Hussaini said.
The senators criticised the release which happened even as civilians are being killed by roadside bombs planted by the Taliban, such as the one in Farah province on Friday which killed around 15 civilians, most of them children and women.
Their comments come as members of the Taliban leadership council, known as the Quetta Shura, have reportedly reviewed the Afghan peace process just days after the Pakistani government released the Taliban officials.
A member of the Shura, who didn't want to be named, told the Pakistani daily The Nation that the Taliban leadership council has welcomed new efforts by the Afghan and Pakistani governments.
Combating Terrorism is Among America's Highest Priorities: US Envoy
TOLOnews.com Monday, 19 November 2012
The threat of terrorism is one of the greatest concerns of the United States and underscores the need for the bilateral security agreement with Afghanistan, US Envoy James Warlick told TOLOnews.
The terrorist threat involves the whole world and is the reason for the country's efforts in Afghanistan, the US Ambassador to Afghanistan and Pakistan said in an exclusive interview.
"This is a challenge for the entire international community. It's not just this region or this country. It's one that we all face. It's one of the highest priorities that we have in the United States, the terrorist threat that we face," he said.
He would not be drawn into answering a question on whether the Taliban should be considered a terrorist network.
"It's not good to get into definitions. What we want to do is to address issues where there is a threat to our values, to peace and stability, and I think what we need to do is to work together on that," he said.
Warlick is hopeful that the transparency of the bilateral security agreement between Afghanistan and America - currently being negotiated - will allay the fears of regional countries.
"We want to make this process as transparent as possible. The agreement we want to be a public one so that no one will feel threatened by it. As we negotiate this together, we want this to be information that is available. Not inside the negotiating room, but the objectives of the agreement. So Afghanistan's neighbors and no one will be under some misunderstanding," he said.
He declined to discuss what the US was looking for in the agreement, saying it was mutually beneficial to both nations and reassured that the US was not looking to retain permanent military bases in Afghanistan.
On the question of why the US would want to be in Afghanistan post 2014 at all, Warlick said a large investment has already been made.
"We've been here more than one decade... We've invested a lot here. I don't just mean financial resources, but I mean human resources. So that's why we want this kind of a partnership. And we're not only talking about security partnership. We want to continue a strategic partnership on the economy, on government institutions, rule of law," he said.
"We don't want that to come to an end. We believe this is a partnership that should continue into the future," he added.
He believes, however, that Afghanistan is headed in the right direction.
"Not everything is going to be perfect [after 2014]. But what we're seeing is the trend line is in the right direction. You're going to have elections here on April 5, 2014. We look forward, as do all Afghans, that these elections will be credible and will lay the basis for future democracy," he said.
Mujahedeen Army Goes Against Afghanistan's Laws: Faizi
TOLOnews.com By Karim Amini Monday, 19 November 2012
The Afghan government will not allow any armed group to stand alongside the national security forces, President Hamid Karzai's spokesman said on Monday, a clear sign that it will not support the move of the Jihadi Council to form a private army.
Aimal Faizi said the last speeches of the Minister of Energy and Water and Jihadi Council leader Mohammad Ismail Khan on the creation of armed groups is not acceptable for the government.
Ismail Khan had said that he plans to form a special militia unit from former Mujahedeen leaders and fighters to help bring more security to the country. He also claimed to have the support of Karzai for this.
But Faizi said the decision went against Afghanistan's Laws.
"About Ismail Khan's speeches, the government does not accept any armed group under any name. The speeches do not represent government policies," he said.
"The Afghan people have already experienced such groups once, and that was not pleasant," he added.
Faizi also noted in the press briefing that Pakistan had thrown its support behind the peace process with its prisoner release as requested by Afghanistan, and he urged the Taliban to cut any ties with Al Qaeda.
"Pakistan has asked all the armed opposition groups of the Afghan government to cut ties with Al Qaeda and come to the negotiation table with Afghanistan. It is hopeful," he said.
The spokesman added that it was the first time that Pakistan has replied to Afghanistan's requests for cooperation and there were high hopes for the future of the peace process.
Power Cuts to Increase If Overload Continues: Brishna
TOLOnews.com By Shahla Murtazaie Monday, 19 November 2012
Power cuts in Kabul will only increase if the power overload of the Kabul residents continues through the winter season, Kabul's main supplier Brishna Electricity said Monday.
Head of Kabul Brishna Abdul Wakil Naseri said that the residents of Kabul will remain without power for multiple hours a day during winter if they do not reduce their power usage.
"If the people do not stop using electric heaters in their homes, we will have no choice but to increase the power cuts. The residents of Kabul may spend hours without electricity," Naseri said.
He stressed that currently, Naghlo, Mahipar and Sorobi power plants provide 80 Megawatts of electricity to Kabul while 260 megawatts is being imported from Uzbekistan.
He believes that if the residents decrease their power usage between 5:00pm and 10:00pm - considered to be the peak hours - there will be no power cuts.
Meanwhile, other sources of fuel for heating such as wood and kerosene have increased recently as the winter season closes in.
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