April 07, 2008	Monday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 29, 1429

KABUL, April 6: Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday expressed confidence that his government would work closely with the new Pakistani prime minister to fight extremism plaguing both countries.

“There is no doubt that the continuation of the war on terrorism is a priority for Afghanistan. There is no doubt that Pakistan suffers at the hands of terrorism,” Karzai told a press conference.

“This is a joint struggle. If either of us comes up short in this struggle, then we will have harmed our people,” he said upon his return home from a Nato summit in Bucharest.

The US-backed Afghan president said he had had “broad contacts” with the new leaders of Pakistan’s coalition government, including Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and former premier Nawaz Sharif.

Karzai on Sunday reiterated his call for talks with Taliban fighters who are not linked to Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network, urging them to “live a peaceful life under Afghanistan’s constitution.”

The Afghan president said he was “very satisfied” following last week’s Nato summit in Bucharest, noting the “exceptionally strong backing” the alliance had offered to Kabul.

The only country that publicly announced troop contributions to the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) at the summit was France, which said it would send a 700-member battalion to eastern Afghanistan.

General Dan McNeill, the US commander of Isaf, has requested two additional combat brigades and a brigade of military trainers.

But so far, Nato has had trouble meeting even the minimum military requirements — two manoeuvre battalions and a border security battalion as well as more helicopters and unmanned aircraft.—AFP