With the impasse over the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) between Kabul and Washington showing no signs of ending, can the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) be counted on to independently secure the country?
With the impasse over the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) between Kabul and Washington showing no signs of ending, can the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) be counted on to independently secure the country?The White House has once again issued a warning that the US-led NATO will provide no assistance to Afghanistan unless the president signs the military pact that will decide where and how many troops will remain in the next few weeks.
Kabul’s position has also not changed since Adela Raz, the first deputy for the office of the spokesperson and director of communications, said the signing of the BSA was contingent on Washington agreeing to new conditions including the shifting of Afghan prisoners from the infamous Guantanamo detention centre. The government has also demanded the US play a role in securing peace with the Taleban.
What happens next has become a little more complicated with Afghan and US officials sparring over a decision to release 88 Taleban prisoners from Bagram. The US raised objections to the release, prompting the government to announce on Jan 7 that it would go ahead with the decision of the Afghan Review Board that studied the documents on the prisoners. Head of the board, Abdul Shakur Dadras, said he saw “no reason to convict them”.
The government has been asserting its independence to the surprise of its critics. Yet there is no hiding the nervousness about Afghanistan’s ability to go it on its own.
President Hamid Karzai held a meeting with high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Interior Affairs on the issue.
The president praised the courage of the Afghan National Army (ANA), and said the challenge lies in persuading the “Afghan nation” to see the security forces as their defenders. “When the Afghan nation sees us as their defenders we would not face problems. The disaster comes when our people don’t see their guardians as their protectors,” according to the president.
He shared with the meeting the government’s plans to purchase new military equipment, and strengthen the air force. The Afghan army, which has been dependent on foreign assistance, will stand on its own foot, he promised. In his opinion security forces must be fully equipped to handle threats to the country’s security from land and air.
Karzai’s promises to strengthen the security forces have gone down well with the public.
Farid who lives in Kabul believes, “If the national army is well equipped, enough salary is given (to the military), arms and equipment are modern, they can repel any kind of external and internal threat.
Securing the east
Hopes for the future are pinned on the recent track record of the Afghan military.
In 2013, security forces were able to show their willingness to act independently in times of crisis. By the end of last year, security forces had independent charge of 85 percent of the country.
A Taleban operation named Khaled Bin Waled, a famous holy war fighter in the history of Islam, launched at the end of April last year, was called off. Security and intelligence forces worked together to stop the Taleban achieving their goals. The Taleban have shifted to sabotaging infrastructure and development programmes, and attacking the highways.
Securing the east and north-east was another feather in the cap of security forces. The biggest US base in the east and south-east called Forward Operation Base Salerno located in Khost, bordering Pakistan, was handed over to Afghan security forces. It was the third biggest US base in Afghanistan.
The national army was able to clear the way between Nuristan and Kunar.
General Zaher Azimi, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence, identified military operations in Nuristan, Kunar, Badakhshan and Helmand in 2013 where Afghan soldiers countered the insurgents, and defended the country’s territory.
Meanwhile, the Taleban have made entries into nine provinces in the north that were relatively secure, and opened a way to central Asia to connect rebels of Farghana Valley with tribal areas of Pakistan, and spread their influence in China’s restive Zinjiang province.
Compared to previous years there was a decline in political assassinations in 2013.
Striking out alone
Can the current high morale among security forces last after the exit of foreign troops? Opinion is divided.
The naysayers believe the international community’s support is crucial in the current climate of domestic and regional flux. The possibility of a return to civil war will remain as long as instability persists. The US must keep its promise to support the country even after 2014. Washington has threatened to not give military equipment to Afghan forces unless the government signs the BSA.
Political analyst Sakhi Munir thinks the threats are only to pressure Kabul to agree to the security agreement. At the end of November last year, the president had called a loya jirga to decide if the BSA was in the country’s interest. But days after the gathering voted in favour of the agreement Karzai announced the pact may be signed only by the new government that will be sworn in after presidential elections scheduled for in April.
In a recent meeting, candidates for the coming presidential polls were told the signing of the agreement was close.
