NATO Foreign Ministers take forward work on post-2014. Peace forever

05 Dec. 2012 NATO Foreign Ministers take forward work on post-2014 commitment NATO Foreign Ministers took forward their Lisbon decision to contribute to the long-term sustainment of the Afghan national security forces on 5 December. “At the Chicago Summit in May, we committed to play our part in developing appropriate, coherent, and effective funding mechanisms for the Afghan forces. Today 52 nations reaffirmed those commitments. And we took a step forward by agreeing to develop further a funding mechanism which will complement the broader international efforts within a robust accountability framework”, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO’s Secretary General said at a press conference. As agreed at Chicago, accountability, coherence and transparency are the key principles guiding the establishment and functioning of the funding mechanism. In Brussels, NATO Foreign Ministers also reiterated that the Afghan Government assumes the primary responsibility for the sustainment of the Afghan forces. “For its part, the Afghan government committed to taking on an increasingly large share of the funding, as the Afghan economy and its own resources grow”, Mr. Rasmussen recalled. Doctor Zalmay Rassoul, Foreign Minister of Afghanistan as well as representatives from ISAF nations and international partners such as Japan, the European Union and the United Nations, also attended the meeting, during which progress with transition was also reviewed. At his earlier press conference on the first day, NATO’s Secretary General praised the achievements made through the NATO-Russia Council work programme on Afghanistan, particularly in providing practical support and training to the Afghan Air Force, counter-narcotics officers from across Central Asia, and in expanding transit arrangements to and from Afghanistan.