Afghan and NATO forces have stepped up their fight against a militant
network considered the most dangerous threat facing coalition forces in
Afghanistan, the nation's defense officials said Tuesday.
The
Haqqani network is the main target of a days-long operation along the
Afghan side of the Afghan-Pakistani border, where the militants operate.
The Haqqani group, which is linked to both the Taliban and al-Qaida,
has been blamed for high profile attacks in the Afghan capital,
including last month's 19-hour siege against the U.S. Embassy in Kabul.
"They create problems for both countries," Afghan army chief of staff, Gen. Sher Mohammad Karimi, told reporters at a briefing.
The U.S. has been trying to coax Pakistan to go after the Haqqani network.
The
issue is a main cause of tension between the U.S.-led coalition and
Pakistan. Afghan and NATO officials are tiring of Pakistan's inability
or reluctance to confront the insurgent group. Pakistan's reluctance to
cooperate has prompted the U.S. to step up missile strikes against the
Haqqani network in the group's safe haven in North Waziristan in
Pakistan.
The verbal and military fight against the Haqqani
network intensified last month when then Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman
Adm. Mike Mullen called the Haqqanis a "veritable arm" of the Pakistani
intelligence agency, and charged it directly supported the militants who
had mounted the attack on the U.S. embassy in Kabul.
President
Barack Obama has said that he believes Pakistan is not going after
insurgent groups that it feels could end up regaining power in
Afghanistan after coalition forces leave.
A senior official with
the U.S.-led coalition told reporters at a briefing Tuesday that the
coalition was very focused now on the Haqqani network. The group
operates mainly in Khost, Paktia and Paktika provinces, but the
coalition has seen a significant uptick in Haqqani activity in Wardak
and Logar provinces, which are on Kabul's doorstep, said the official,
speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations.
Intelligence
officials in Pakistan and the U.S. have confirmed that several top
Haqqani network figures have been killed in targeted attacks in recent
days.
At a briefing at the Afghan Defense Ministry, Minister Abdul
Rahim Wardak also said that while Afghanistan's current firepower is
enough to deal with the insurgents, the nation needs more advanced
weapons, like fighter jets, to defend against foreign threats and ensure
a balance of power in the region.
"What we are asking to acquire
is just the ability to defend ourselves, and also to be relevant in the
future so that our friends and allies can count on us to participate in
peacekeeping and other operations of mutual interest," Wardak said.
The
United States, as part of an effort to bolster, train and equip the
Afghan army, has provided billions of dollars in equipment but has
balked at supplying sophisticated technology like fighter planes,
arguing that Afghanistan doesn't need such armaments and does not yet
have the capacity to maintain them.
Wardak said about $10 billion
has already been allocated by the U.S. to equip and train the country's
army and police. He said another package totaling about $10 billion is
being discussed, but must still be approved by U.S. lawmakers.
According
to the NATO coalition, $2.7 billion in equipment has arrived or will
arrive between August 2011 and March 2012. This includes about 22,700
vehicles, 39,500 weapons, 52,200 pieces of communication equipment and
38 aircraft.
Training the Afghan security forces is a top priority
for the U.S.-led international coalition that has been battling the
Taliban and affiliated insurgents for the past decade. NATO wants to
withdraw its combat forces by the end of 2014 and needs its Afghan
counterparts to be ready to assume full security responsibilities by
then.
The defense minister did not name any potential regional
threats. Pakistan and Iran — both of which have far better equipped
arsenals — are widely seen as two neighbors with the potential to
influence the country's shaky reconstruction effort and push to crush
the stubborn Taliban insurgency.
Karimi said that building a
strong military was crucial as way of ensuring the balance of power in
the region and as "a deterrence for this country against our neighbors."
"But by no means (do) we have a policy of offensive operations," he said. "Our strategy is defensive." AP
