January 8, 2002	Tuesday	Shawwal 23, 1422

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 7: British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Monday that “enormous challenges” remain in Afghanistan after the defeat of the Taliban and Al Qaeda movements there.

Mr Blair said the US-led coalition against terrorism would continue its military campaign in Afghanistan “until all our objectives” were achieved.

Though Mulla Mohammad Omar and Osama bin Laden had not been caught yet, he said, the people of Afghanistan had been liberated from the extremist Taliban regime.

Mr Blair made the remarks at a press conference arranged by the coalition information centre soon after he arrived here on the third leg of his South Asian tour.

Mr Blair said the international community must not abandon Afghanistan during its rebuilding process.

“The international community has got to remain committed to helping Afghanistan.”

Mr Blair said such a commitment was necessary to ensure the country, having been a “failed state for many years”, becomes “a reliable partner in this region”.

“Let us reflect on what happened when we failed to make that commitment 12 years ago. Afghanistan became a failed state,” he said.

“It is vital that we, as an international community, remember the commitment we have given to the people there,” he said.

The British premier said the ousting of the Taliban regime was only the first step in Afghanistan’s rehabilitation.

“The second step is to put in place the stability for the long term and that is why the international community has got to remain committed to helping Afghanistan to becoming a stable partner in the region and a proper member of the international community.”

He said the military campaign in Afghanistan had been “immensely successful” despite the failure to capture Osama or Mulla Omar.

After the Sept 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, “people then were very skeptical as to whether the action in Afghanistan would be successful,” said Mr Blair.

“Some people warned it would lead to humanitarian disaster, a military disaster, a political disaster... (but) we have managed to achieve more than people possibly could have dreamt of a few months ago.

Asked whether the campaign could be considered a success without the capture of Osama, Mr Blair said that tracking him down remained a major goal.

“The campaign remains in place to make sure all our objectives are secured and that includes tracking down those responsible for terrorism in Afghanistan,” he said.—Agencies