Kabul, UN dismiss fears of government collapse

KABUL: Afghan and UN officials dismissed yesterday a warning from an international think tank that the Kabul government might collapse after NATO troops withdraw in 2014.
The International Crisis Group (ICG), based in Brussels, issued a report on Monday predicting that the Western-backed administration could fall apart, particularly if presidential elections in 2014 are fraudulent or rigged.
But a presidential spokesman dismissed the report as “nonsense and garbage”.
“Our nation wasn’t born in 2001. We have a very long history and we have fought against superpowers and we know how to defend our country,” said spokesman Hamid Elmi.
He added that Kabul was counting on “honest, sincere” support from the international community beyond 2014. Jan Kubis, the UN envoy for Afghanistan, told a news conference that he did not think the report was realistic. He said “strong” commitment from the international community was “not based on speculation” that Afghanistan will collapse after 2014, but instead that it would develop, albeit with problems, challenges and difficulties.
Meanwhile, NATO defense ministers met yesterday to review the alliance’s costly commitments, most notably in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan is the major talking point, to be taken up today, officials said, with the alliance soon to start planning for its new training, advice and assistance mission after the 2014 withdrawal of combat troops. The NATO-led peacekeeping force in Kosovo, whose self-proclaimed independence is disputed by neighboring Serbia, is less dramatic but also requires discussion as the commitment runs into its 13th year.
Officials Monday highlighted the impact of the economic slump on defense spending, stressing the need for a common effort to make funds go further and the importance of joint operations and capabilities, as demonstrated in Afghanistan.
“If we wind down our combined operations, what can we do to maintain our inter-operability (which) is both a military requirement and a political one,” one official said.
NATO agreed at a Chicago summit in May on a “2020” concept which gives a large role to “Smart Defense,” the sharing of resources combined with more coordination.
The issue is fraught, however, as member nations jealously guard sovereignty in the all important matter of defense, though there seems to be little alternative to more burden sharing for all NATO members.