MONITORING (SW)- The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Wednesday the Alliance is 'adjusting' presence and troop levels in Afghanistan.
Speaking at a press conference at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, he said the Allies reiterated their strong commitment to Afghanistan’s long-term security. "This commitment is vital to ensuring the peace process continues to move forward", he stressed.
Stoltenberg said to support the peace process, the Alliance wss 'adjusting' presence in Afghanistan. "And we will consider further adjustments in troop levels in close coordination with Allies", the NATO Secretary General said. He said NATO has brought down presence in Afghanistan, from roughly 16,000 troops down to roughly 12,000 troops. 'We are prepared to further reduce that presence in a coordinated, planned and orderly way. But of course, that depends on the peace process, because this is a direct result of the US-Taliban agreement and the efforts to have a real peace process in Afghanistan. And, of course, what we expect and what we call on Taliban to do is to, of course, reduce violence. We haven’t seen the reduction in violence that we expect and that we think is necessary to see, to really underpin the peace efforts, but we call on Taliban to reduce violence", he said.
He said the Taliban have to live up to their commitments, take part in intra-Afghan negotiations and make real compromises for lasting peace. "This is actually a very explicit condition in the agreement with Taliban. And therefore, we expect them to do that. And one of the reasons why we will measure developments while . . . one of the reasons, the main reasons why we also have made it clear that we will only leave Afghanistan when the time is right, is that we have to make sure that Afghanistan doesn’t once again become a country where al-Qaeda, other terrorist organisations can operate freely. So this is an important part of the peace efforts. It’s one of the main conditions; is, of course, the need that Taliban breaks all bonds with al-Qaeda", he added.
The NATO Secretary General added Allies and partners remain firmly committed to Afghanistan’s long-term security and stability and to ensuring that soil is never again used to launch terrorist attacks against Allies.
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