Mr Vygaudas Ušackas said the EU assistance to Afghanistan would continue until 2025.
“…I am pleased to know we have pledged for years to the current level of financial support for years to come to Afghanistan which is about 1 billion euros every year,” he said.

He said based on the commitments made at the Bonn conference the EU will also continue to help with the training of the Afghan National Police.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government will use international support to make Afghan security forces fully ready to beble to take over all security responsibilities and stand on their own feet.
The EU has allocated 20 million euros for reforms in the Afghan judicial organizations and 40 million for reforms in other government institutions.

Mr Ušackas also announced that the draft of the long term strategic partnership between the EU and Afghanistan will be submitted for consideration of Afghan authorities in the next month and would be signed after that.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also announced that a regional conference will be held next year to attract cooperation to improve Afghanistan’s trade and political relations with other countries.

Militants attacked two military bases in Yaqoobi and Ali Sher districts at easern Khost province.
Coalition forces officials in eastern Khost province confirmed the reports and said Afghan and NATO troops did not suffer any casualties during the incident.

The Islamic Party (Hezb-e-Islami) led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed responsibility behind the missile attack on a military base in Ali Sher district while Taliban militants group claimed responsibility for missile attack at Yaqoobi district of eastern Khost province.

The two militants groups claims to have incurred casualties to Afghan and NATO troops following missile attacks on the two military bases.

Local security officials in eastern Khost province denied claims by militants for Afghan and NATO troops casualties.

Chief of the Commission for Security Transition Dr. Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai while speaking during the transition ceremony said, the International Community has vowed to provide Afghan Security Forces with the military equipments by next week.

Mr. Ahmadzai further added, Afghan security forces will not be able to defend the Afghan soil if the International Community does not assist Afghanistan in providing military equipments.

The second phase of security transition from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force to Afghan security forces was formally initiated following an inauguration ceremony in northern Parwan province at the beginning of December 2011.

The ceremony which was held on the occasion of the second phase of security transition to Afghan security forces was attended high level Afghan delegation including the interior affairs and defense ministers and foreign diplomats including the US ambassador to Afghanistan, NATO commander in Afghanistan.

The officials further added, the militants were killed during clashes in Barmal district of eastern Paktika province.

A media official of the Afghan National Army 203 National Security Brigade Sadat Gul Hotak said, Afghan National Army soldiers also seized some weapons and ammunitions during the clashes with the militants group.

Mr. Hotak further added, Afghan National Army soldiers and Afghan civilians did not suffer any casualties during the clashes.
Taliban militants group yet to comment regarding the report.

Ambassador Crocker called it only rumours and said such an effort by Washington would “dishonour the sacrifice of more than 1,800 American service members who have died in the cause of a unified Afghanistan, governed by its Constitution.”

Earlier this month, four members of the US congress met with some key Afghan opposition leaders in Berlin and they came up with a statement calling for a decentralised political system in Afghanistan.

“This centralised power has led to massive corruption, disenfranchisement of a large segment of the Afghan people, obstacles to economic development, massive abuses of power, increasing political instability, poor governance, and a vast undermining of law and order,” the members of US Congress had said after the 9 January meeting in the German capital.

Opposition leaders Ahmad Zia Massoud, Amrullah Saleh, Mohammad Mohaqeq and Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum had attended the meeting, organised by Aspen Institute.

They had also called for a national dialogue on a revised constitution in Afghanistan.

President Karzai, speaking in the Parliament on Saturday, condemned such efforts, saying that Afghanistan was not a laboratory for foreigners for such experiments.

Speaking at the Government Media and Information Centre (GMIC), Crocker said “rumours that the United States has a plan to divide Afghanistan or change its form of government are, frankly speaking, lies”.

“Simply put, the United States is committed to supporting the efforts of the central government, to build a strong, secure, democratic, and unified Afghanistan. We have no other aim or goal,” Crocker said, addressing government spokesperson and some journalists.

Crocker also said his government supports an Afghan-to-Afghan peace talks with the Taliban, adding that it was an “absurd rumour” that the United States was seeking a secret deal with the Taliban.

“For a peace process to succeed, Afghans must talk to Afghans. The President also spoke of Afghan government contacts with representatives of Hezb-e-Islami. This is another example of an Afghan-led process that we are pleased to support,” Crocker said.

Mr. Nasar further added, the accused individual had taken pictures of the Afghan and NATO military bases and also had telephone numbers of the Iranian Intelligence officials.

He also said, provincial intelligence officials had noted the discussions of the accused individual with the Iranian intelligence officials where he was providing information regarding the military bases.

Provincial Attorney General For National Security said, the accused individual had also brought some papers from Iran which shows his efforts for providing information to Iran.

Judicial authorities in western Herat province also said, the accused had confessed to espionage charges against him.
This comes as the accused earlier said that he confessed to the charges as he was torutured and beaten.
The detained suspect is originally a resident of the western Herat province but has spent most of his time in Iran, he was detained two months back after he returned from Iran.

Meanwhile Provincial Attorney General For National Security emphasized that the court verdict is not final and the accused has the right to appeal for the reconsideration of his case.

A provincial Judicial official in Herat province said, this is not the first time susch suspects have been detained for espionage charges.

The official said, Similar cases have been referred to Herat court with the espionage charges for neighboring Iran.

Afghan Interior Ministry following a press release said, Afghan Police forces conducted at least three military operations in conjunction with the Afghan National Army, Afghan intelligence and NaTO-led International Coalition security forces in Helmand and Kandahar porvince.

The source further added, Afghan security forces also seized some drugs and weapons including 3 AK-47 assault rifles, 6 improvised explosive device, 38 kgs of explosives, 124 kgs of opium, 2065 kgs of Hashish, 5 kgs of heroin and 1 motorcyle being used by the militants.

In the meantime Afghan police in northern Takhar province seized at least 2 barrels of explosives at Darqad district in this province, officials said.

The President is believed to have made the comments in reaction to the calls by some opposition parties to change the government from presidential system to a parliamentary one.
But the Leader of Afghanistan National Front, Ahmad Zia Massoud, views Karzai’s comments as resistance against the will of the Afghan citizens.

Mr.Massoud said Afghanistan had been a laboratory of authoritarian regimes in different periods and that the issue has to be addressed now.
The Leader of the National Front once again stressed on the formation of a decentralized government system in Afghanistan.

President Karzai’s recent comments have followed many reactions.
“If there is resistance against the legitimate demands of the Afghan people, it means that the government is going towards totalitarianism and despotism and the nation will be faced with an unpleasant situation,” Ahmad Zia Massoud said.

A member of the National Front, Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq, said that President Karzai should not attribute the demands of the National Front to foreigners.
“Mr Karzai himself is being fed by foreigners. He uses a plane to go to the parliament from the palace and his bodyguards were foreigners before. Now he attributes others’ words to foreigners,” Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq said.

The National Front believes that the current government system is unjust and warns that this situation must not continue.
“The government is unable to address people’s demands and the country is going towards a crisis. This is why the National Front called for a change in the Afghan political system so that a crisis can be averted,” MrMassoud said.

It comes as the leading members of the National Front recently met with US lawmakers in Berlin and stressed on the establishment of a decentralized government system in Afghanistan.
The Afghan government then called the meeting in Berlin against the constitution warning that such meeting must not be repeated.

Jawid Ludin once again stressed on the importance of Pakistan’s role in the Afghan peace process.

“The peace process is a long and comprehensive process and we have long been making efforts in this field. Opening an office in Qatar is a step. We hope to obtain tangible results,” Mr Ludin said.

He said if the Afghan government has made its position clear and would agree of the US transferred Taliban prisoners to Qatar to reunited with their families.

The US special envoy to Pakistan and Afghan, Marc Grossman, welcomed comments by Mr Ludin, but said many decisions have yet to be made.

“I agree with the point that the deputy foreign minister made, especially the point that he makes in the beginning which is the peace process is a comprehensive and large and complicated process and has many parts , Mr Grossman said.

But the US special envoy said the United States had not yet made made any decision whether to transfer the Taliban prisoners to Qatar.

“…it is an issue, in United States, of law. First of all we have to make the requirements of our laws, secondly this is something which we would want to consult with our congress.
Many decisions have yet to be made,” Mr Gross said.

Marc Grossman arrived in Kabul on Saturday to meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai and discuss about peace talks with the Taliban.

Mr Grossman’s visit took place at a time when the Afghan President was concerned about being marginalised from peace talks. The Afghan government has stressed that the talks should be led by Afghans.

The Taliban group recently announced it had agreed to open an office in the Gulf state of Qatar, but added that holding talks would not mean that the militant group would accept the Afghan constitution.

(New York) – President Hamid Karzai should appoint independent and experienced human rights experts to fill vacancies on the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), Human Rights Watch said today. The presidential selection of any new commissioners should ensure that the commission maintains its credibility and effectiveness. The most recent five-year terms of all nine commissioners expired in December 2011.

“The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission has played a crucial role in helping to remedy Afghanistan’s challenging human rights situation,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Any action that weakens the commission will have direct and negative implications for the Afghan people.”

Established in accordance with the Bonn Agreement of 2001 and codified in the Afghan constitution, the commission is the main institution within the Afghan government responsible for promoting human rights. Although the commission is a government body, with commissioners appointed by the president, it is by law independent.

The commission’s responsibilities includemonitoring the general human rights situation in Afghanistan, investigating specific human rights violations, making recommendations to the government and settinggovernment policy, and assisting individual Afghans whose rights have been violated.

Human Rights Watch called on Karzai to fully consider the views of Afghan human rights organizations and activists in making his selection of new commissioners.

The Paris Principles, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, explain how appointments to national human rights institutions such as the AIHRC should be made. The principles emphasize that appointments to these institutions should be made in an inclusive and transparent way, involving all of a country’s key groups responsible for upholding human rights.

The commissioners selected should have a proven record as effective advocates for human rights. All candidates should also be screened carefully to ensure that they are above any suspicion of involvement in human rights abuses.

“New commissioners should be selected through a transparent process that strengthens confidence in the commission and in the government’s commitment to human rights,” Adams said. “President Karzai should ensure his appointments are experts with a life-long commitment to human rights and reject out of hand anyone with a background of human right abuse.”