By NNN-APP
New York : Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday that terrorism still threatens Afghanistan’s fragile peace, and he called for continued international support to strengthen security in his war-torn country.
“We monitor with deep concern the continued presence of terrorist infrastructure in our region and condemn, in equally strong terms, the atrocities that terrorists are committing in places beyond our borders,” Karzai told the UN General Assembly.
He said—without elaborating—that sanctuaries and terrorist infrastructure in the region were being tolerated, broadening the scope of terrorist activities in his country.
The President denounced the sharp rise in terrorist attacks within Afghanistan in the past two years, and particularly the “new and brutal tactics such as beheadings, kidnappings and the burning of schools and clinics.”
Stressing that “terrorism was never, nor is it today, a home-grown phenomenon in Afghanistan,” Karzai said the threat can only be truly overcome if dealt with regionally and internationally.
He described the recent holding of a joint peace jirga between Pakistan and Afghanistan, as a symbol of the benefits of constructive cooperation in devising a counter-terrorism strategy.
On the weekend, Karzai attended a high-level meeting called by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to demand sustained international support for Afghanistan.
In his address, Karzai called for “redoubling” of efforts to enable the Afghan Army and police to take a leading role in the protection of the country.
A force of more than 5,000 NATO troops has been providing security for the Kabul government and training the army and police forces. The United States separately has more than 11,000 troops deployed to hunt Taliban fighters and al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Turning to the issue of illegal drugs, Karzai said his Government would prioritise the provision of alternative livelihoods to farmers and speed up its poppy eradication programmes and interdiction of traffickers.
But other countries needed to play their part in defeating the global narcotic trade by battling international drug mafia and crime groups, strengthening border controls and reducing the demand for illegal drugs in foreign markets.