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 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said President Ashraf Ghani's
new government had already made moves to combat money laundering and
corruption since taking office in September in the first democratic
transfer of power in Afghan history.
Ghani, who with former presidential rival Abdullah Abdullah formed a
power-sharing government after months of wrangling over election
results, sought to reassure allies that he would tackle corruption
and stop the theft of aid money.
"We are confident that the policies outlined today by President
Ghani and CEO Abdullah will result in a more stable and prosperous
Afghanistan," Kerry said at a conference on Afghanistan in London.
"This is an extraordinary moment of transition and the possibilities
are so enormous," he added.
A 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan overthrew the Islamist
Taliban who had given sanctuary to al Qaeda. But as most foreign
combat troops prepare to leave, local forces are battling a Taliban
insurgency.
"Let our friends celebrate, let our detractors note that history
will not be repeated, that we have overcome the past, we face the
future with full unity and with confidence," Ghani said at the
conference, which is not expected to generate new aid.
"We hope that we will never need direct combat support because the
last thing we want is more war," he added.
British Prime Minister David Cameron stressed the importance of
tackling corruption, saying businesses would only invest if
Afghanistan could build strong, accountable institutions.
A statement at the end of the conference reaffirmed previous donor
pledges of $16 billion over four years made at a Tokyo meeting in
2012, but it also emphasized that Afghanistan would not be able to
survive solely on domestic revenues.
Kerry said the London conference was never meant to be a donor
meeting for Afghanistan but to hear from Afghan's leaders their
vision for the country going forward.
He said donors could be encouraged by the political progress and
reforms to come forward later with new aid.
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"There will be for sure some effort to increase contributions over
time," Kerry said.
But the goal was to make Afghanistan a self-sustaining economy, he
said.
Days after becoming president, Ghani signed a new security agreement
with the United States, a move his predecessor Hamid Karzai refused
to do. The agreement lays out the terms under which U.S. troops may
stay in Afghanistan.
"We are committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be
used as a safe haven from which terrorists can threaten the
international community," Kerry said.
He, however, said Afghanistan would still face security challenges.
"Security will grow, it will get better, but no one should be
surprised by attacks that will take place here and there," he said.
At the peak of U.S. involvement, there were roughly 100,000 American
troops in Afghanistan in 2011.
Beginning next year, about 8,000 American troops, 4,000 other
foreign military personnel, are expected to stay on in Afghanistan
as part of a NATO-led training and advisor mission. Some 1,800
Americans will conduct counter terrorism mission.
(Editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
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