Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

Strategic Cooperation Deal Inked with Germany

Strategic Cooperation Deal Inked with Germany

KABUL - President Hamid Karzai and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Wednesday signed a long-term strategic cooperation agreement between their countries in Berlin on Wednesday, a presidential aide said.
Germany is the sixth country with which Afghanistan has concluded such a pact. In recent months, similar agreements were wrapped up with India, Italy, France, Britain and the United States.
Karzai's spokesman Aimal Faizi told Pajhwok Afghan News over the telephone from Berlin that Germany would give 50 million (7.5 billion Afghanis) in annual assistance.

Germany has about 5,000 soldiers under command of NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) mostly based in northern provinces. As many as 53 German soldiers had so far been killed in Afghanistan.
The Agreement would be valid for a period of five years after it entered into force, the spokesman said. It would be tacitly extended for successive periods of five years, unless one of the parties terminates it by writing to the other through diplomatic channels at least one year prior to the expiry of such a period.

Both sides agreed on the importance of good governance, public administration reform, transparency and mutual accountability for cooperation between national and international structures to improve and the implementation of the rule of law to be strengthened.

The accord calls for creating a democratic, politically stable Afghanistan, with a growing economy in a stable region, actively promoting respect for human rights, including the rights of women and children, in accordance with the constitution of Afghanistan.

The two sides will continue political dialogue on the basis of the conclusions of the International Afghanistan Conference in Bonn of 5 December 2011. The political dialogue will focus on areas of bilateral relations, regional and international issues, good governance and human rights.

The pact envisages cooperation in the field of defense through military training and bilateral annual programs. Both instruments will be renegotiated annually on the basis of available capacity, previous scope of use and their efficiency.

Military aid includes the training of members of Afghan armed forces in Bundeswehr facilities in Germany. Bilateral annual programs are based on the principle of reciprocity. Separate agreements shall regulate the temporary residence of Afghan armed forces personnel in Germany.

Germany will make an appropriate contribution to financing Afghan security forces (army and police), as agreed at the International Conference on Afghanistan in Bonn on December 5, 2011.
The main emphasis of development cooperation will be on sustainable economic development, formal basic and vocational education, energy supply, water sector and good governance.

Similarly, the regional and pectoral focus of bilateral development cooperation and civil reconstruction will be subject to agreement in the inter-governmental negotiations.
In order to complement long-term development cooperation, Germany will support Afghanistan with targeted civilian measures to promote stability in the areas of higher education, health, judicial system development and civil aviation.

The parties agreed to integrate the instruments used by both sides to promote trade and investment, expand economic cooperation in export financing, export credit insurance, investments and strengthening of small and mid-sized enterprises.

During the visit, Karzai and his Foreign Minister Dr. Zalmai Rassoul also held talks with the German federal minister for economic cooperation and development on bolstering trade ties.
Karzai will fly to the US to participate in the Chicago Summit on May 20-21, where world leaders will hammer out their long-term strategy for Afghanistan. NATO's combat troops are slated to leave the country in 2014. (Pajhwok)