Afghanistan (Outcomes of Bonn International Conference)

Lord Hague of Richmond Excerpts

Thursday 8th December 2011 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)]

On 5 December, Germany hosted and Afghanistan chaired the international Afghanistan conference in Bonn, entitled “Afghanistan and the International Community: From Transition to the Transformation Decade”. The UK, together with over 100 international delegations, reiterated the international community’s long-term commitment to Afghanistan. I represented the UK.

The conference conclusions set out a plan for the international community’s long-term engagement with Afghanistan beyond 2014. They included commitments to provide economic support to Afghanistan for the decade after 2014, until Afghanistan becomes economically self-sustainable. The conference also agreed to produce a clear plan for the future structure and funding for the Afghan National Security Forces in advance of the NATO Chicago summit next May. In addition the conclusions set out an agreed set of guiding principles for the reconciliation process and its outcomes. This builds on the recent Traditional Loya Jirga in Afghanistan with support for an inclusive, representative peace process.

The Afghan Government committed themselves to make further progress on key development priorities, including governance, anti-corruption and rule of law. The Afghan Government also promised to uphold all their international human rights obligations and to protect women’s rights as enshrined in the constitution.

I reinforced the UK’s long-term commitment to Afghanistan and the aims of the international community post-2014 including development aid and support for the ANSF. I welcomed the political and economic framework agreed at the conference and the importance of regional engagement, building on the successful Istanbul conference in November. I reaffirmed our support for the Afghan Government in upholding human rights, including women’s rights.

President Karzai was due to visit London immediately after the Bonn conference to sign the UK’s own long-term partnership agreement with Afghanistan. President Karzai had to cancel his visit to the UK because of the tragic sectarian attacks in Afghanistan on 6 December. We had planned to sign the enduring partnership with President Karzai during his visit to London. Instead, we will sign this partnership in the near future. I condemn this attack and the terrorist attacks of 7 December that resulted in the loss of many innocent lives. While we strongly condemn such atrocities, these acts of terrorism will not undermine the commitments made at the Bonn conference by the UK and the international community. We will continue to build on these commitments to see the emergence of a stable and secure Afghanistan where the rights of individuals are respected.