Biden invited to NATO summit on Afghanistan

KABUL (Pajhwok): US President-elect Joe Biden has been invited to a NATO summit early next year when allies may decide on the future of mission in Afghanistan, the alliance chief says.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a virtual news conference in Brussels on Monday: “We face a difficult dilemma (in Afghanistan).”

The quandary was whether to leave and let Afghanistan once again emerged as a safe haven for international terrorists, or stay and risk a longer mission with renewed violence.

Apart from the mission in Afghanistan, foreign ministers from allied nations would also confer on the challenges posed by Russia and China, he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

The foreign ministerial meeting, set for December 1 and 2, will also be attended Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

At a meeting of a defense ministers in February, allies were expected to decide on the way forward in Afghanistan, the secretary general explained.

He indicated a key NATO summit of heads of state, including Joe Biden, could follow soon after that in the early part of 2021.

The NATO campaign to train and advise the Afghan security forces continued despite the US decision to cut troop levels by mid-January, Stoltenberg added.

“No one wants to stay in Afghanistan longer than necessary,” he insisted. “In the months ahead, we will continue to assess our presence based on conditions on the ground.”

Ministers will discuss the NATO 2030 initiative and the continued adaptation of the Alliance, Russia’s military build-up, the rise of China, and NATO’s mission in Afghanistan.

PAN Monitor/mud

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