Nato to affirm exit plan for Afghanistan

CHICAGO - United States President Barack Obama and Nato allies were to focus yesterday on logistical aspects of ending the protracted Afghan war after President Hamid Karzai vowed his country will no longer be a "burden" for the international community. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari's attendance at the summit here had raised hopes his government was ready to lift a blockade on Nato convoys, but talks on reopening the routes have stumbled over Islamabad's demand to charge steep fees for trucks crossing the border. Mr Zardari and leaders from some 30 other nations and international organisations joined the Nato allies for yesterday's second day of talks. Leaders of the 28 Nato nations stood in solemn silence as a bugler's lament recalled the heavy cost of a conflict that has killed over 3,000 coalition soldiers, maimed thousands more and left tens of thousands of Afghans dead. As thousands of anti-war protesters clashed with police near the Chicago summit site, the talks aimed to endorse a withdrawal strategy and seek firm commitments from allies to train and bankroll Afghan forces. Although the anti-war rallies have been largely peaceful, scuffles broke out on Sunday when some hardcore demonstrators refused police orders to disperse. Police said 45 people had been arrested and four police officers suffered minor injuries. Before the summit, Mr Obama held talks with Mr Karzai, three weeks after the former's dramatic trip to Kabul, where the two leaders inked a security pact for going forward after the last 130,000 international troops withdraw in late 2014. "We're confident that we are on the right track, and what this Nato summit reflects is that the world is behind the strategy that we've laid out," said Mr Obama, who faces a tough re-election in November. But in a sign of growing impatience within the alliance, new French President Francois Hollande refused to back down from his decision to pull troops out this year, a year earlier than planned. "I told everyone I spoke with that this was not negotiable because it was a question of French sovereignty and everyone understood," he said. Mr Karzai urged the international community to complete a security transition to his Afghan forces. Source: Asiaone