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Germany Called on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to Implement Measures

By Merle David Kellerhals Jr.

The United States and Germany called on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to implement measures to deliver services for the people of Afghanistan, root out corruption, and increase accountability and openness in the way the government works.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said at a press conference with German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle November 9 in Berlin that the allies have been very clear with the Afghan government that they are expecting more in good governance, and will develop benchmarks for the government to meet.

"Any commitment by the governments and the people of the United States, Germany and others who have joined with us through both NATO and the international forces has to be met by an even greater commitment on behalf of the new government of President Karzai," she said.

"We are going to present to the government of Afghanistan and President Karzai a clear set of expectations and of accountability measures, so there can be no doubt as to what we expect from this relationship," Clinton said.

Karzai was declared the winner in the national presidential election by the Independent Electoral Commission of Afghanistan after his opponent announced that he was dropping out of the race before a runoff election that was scheduled to be held November 7.

Westerwelle said it is necessary to make the Afghan government realize that good governance has to become its own yardstick. "We want to ensure that a good and peaceful development can occur within Afghanistan, and in return, we expect of the Afghan government that it makes its own contribution towards this objective," he said.

It is essential that Afghanistan become self-sufficient in providing for its own security, Westerwelle added. "We have to make sure that Afghanistan has its own security infrastructure, that that system is there, and we want to help build it," he said.

AN OFFER TO IRAN

When asked about Iran's nuclear program by reporters, Clinton said the Iranians have not given a formal reply to an offer made by Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States and Germany under which Iran would abandon its nuclear fuel development program. The group of nations is known as the P5+1 and includes the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany. The European Union has also been participating in the negotiations.

The six nations have offered to export low-enriched uranium out of the country for reprocessing and then return it for use in the Tehran research reactor.

"We believe that this offer represents an important opportunity for Iran both to meet the medical and humanitarian needs that the Tehran research reactor fulfills and to begin to restore international confidence in their nuclear program," Clinton said. "Because we don't yet have a formal reply from the Iranians, it would be premature to go to any next steps if Iran decides ultimately to reject this offer."

Clinton said the six nations, working with the International Atomic Energy Agency, intend to press Iran to accept this opportunity. The six nations have been pursuing a dual-track strategy - one track aimed at engagement and diplomacy and efforts like the one represented by the offer on the Tehran research reactor, and a second track that will show the Iranians that there are consequences if they fail to fulfill their obligations and ignore the opportunity to work with the international community, she said.

"Although it is premature to speculate at this point, I think the Iranians are well aware that this is a two-track process, and we continue to urge them to work with us on the first track of diplomacy and engagement," Clinton said.

Clinton was in Berlin with a U.S. delegation to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, which had become the symbol for the divide between the East and the West for nearly a half century. On November 9, 1989, German citizens from then-West Germany and East Germany came together at the wall and began dismantling it as the world watched on television.

On November 8 Clinton accepted the Freedom Award from the Atlantic Council at its annual dinner as a part of the anniversary activities being held in Berlin.

(This is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://www.america.gov)