Donor nations will take a long hard look and make an honest assessment of the situation in Afghanistan at the Paris conference scheduled for next month.
NEW DELHI: Donor nations will take a long hard look and make an honest assessment of the situation in Afghanistan at the Paris conference scheduled for next month. Despite the international community pledging more than $16 billion dollars for the reconstruction of war- ravaged Afghanistan, there is little to show on the ground as the security situation remains precarious. Last month’s assassination attempt attempt on President Hamid Karzai, in the heart of the heavily guarded capital city of Kabul has rattled all stake holders in Afghanistan.
But despite misgivings, the international community is determined to stay the course in Afghanistan, mainly because the world does not have a choice. Unless the Taliban is rooted out of the country and democratic institutions are strengthened and made functional Afghanistan will continue to be what former Indian foreign minister dubbed as the “fountain head of terror.''
Though progress has been made to some extent it is very slow and governance outside in the provinces continues to be abysmal. The disillusionment with the Karzai administration and the provincial sataraps and power brokers has led to many disaffected people turn to the Taliban for succour. The international community know that it is not enough to have troops on the ground, good governenance and reconstruction must go hand in hand. But it is a chicken and egg situation. Unless the security environment improves, re construction work will necessarily be hampered.
When donors meet in June to take stock of Afghanistan, there will be a serious attempt to ensure that the problems are not brushed under the carpet. “We think it is time to make an honest assessment of the situation on the ground, to see where we have failed and where we need to close the gaps,” a western diplomat said. Countries like Germany feel that India can play an effective role in building institutions in Afghanistan. New Delhi is already heavily involved in training Afghan officials to run the government.
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