Afghanistan Times
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By Akhtar M. Nikzad-KABUL: Asking the Obama-administration to implement the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA), Meshrano Jirga or Senate on Monday said that Afghanistan was burning in the war against terrorism and insurgency but the United States is acting like a spectator despite signing the BSA with Afghanistan.
The reaction came over growing insecurity in the country. Concerned over increasing militancy, the International Relations Committee (IRC) of Meshrano Jirga summoned the Afghan security officials to brief the senators over delay in implementation of the BSA.
Chairman of Meshrano Jirga, Fazal Hadi Muslimyar, said that after signing BSA with Washington in 2014, the security situation of Afghanistan is deteriorating and Pakistan fueled insurgency and terrorism further in the war-hit country. He said the main propose of the BSA with the US was to improve security situation in the country.
Muslimyar said that Pakistan is directly involved in training of insurgents in order to create insecurity in Afghanistan, adding that Pakistani military several times fired missiles and attacked the Afghan border police.
“It is clearly mentioned in the security agreement [BSA] that whenever Afghanistan is threatened by any country, the US will defend it. However, now Afghanistan is facing multiple challenges but the US does not want to implement the agreement,” he said.
Washington signed the bilateral security agreement with Kabul in 2014, in order to have military bases in Afghanistan and to strengthen Afghan National Security Forces against insurgents.
Senator Hasibullah Kilimzai said that Washington is not sincere with Kabul. He said the strategic security agreement with the US was an urgent necessity but unfortunately, the United Sated did not fulfill its obligations such as equipping the ANSF and improving security situation in the war-devastated country.
He added the BSA has mentioned that the two countries should establish a joint monitoring committee to ensure the security agreement was implemented but there is no news about establishment of such committee.
“For the past 14 years the US forces are in Afghanistan, claiming to fight terrorism and strengthen democracy, but insurgents are still strong,” he said.
Hinting to the concerns of the senators, Acting Minister of Defense, Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, said the United State under the framework of the BSA provides financial and military support to the ANSF.
He said the US was committed to strengthen the ANSF and in the past six weeks sent 140 armor vehicles for security forces and it is expected that hundreds of armor vehicles will arrive soon to Kabul.
He added that a joint committee comprising of Afghan, US and NATO security officials had been established to observe the implementation of the BSA and strategic agreement signed with NATO. Stanekzai said the committee held a meeting two weeks ago about provision of support to Afghanistan.
The IRC in a resolution asked the US to elaborate its financial cooperation for the ANSF up to 2020 and equip Afghan security forces according to the schedule.
