NATO takes over Afghan peacekeeping

KABUL: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) began the first operation outside Europe in its 54-year history yesterday when it took command of peacekeepers in the Afghan capital.

At a ceremony in Kabul, German Defence Minister Peter Struck said NATO's job was to ensure Afghanistan did not become a safe haven for terrorism again.

"There is still a lot to be done," he said. "Afghanistan must not lapse back into anarchy or chaos. Afghanistan must not again become the home of global terror as was the case under the rule of the Taliban."

Germany and the Netherlands were in joint command of the 5,000-strong International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) until the handover, which was attended by Afghan President Hamid Karzai and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe General James Jones.

The open-ended command is a strategic departure from NATO's Cold War role of defending its immediate borders, which officials say stems from a post-September 11 perception among its 19 members that the alliance needs to deploy where problems arise.

The Afghan mission also comes amid US efforts to get NATO to take a role in stabilizing post-war Iraq, where US troops come under almost daily attack.

At the ceremony, Lieutenant-General Norbert van Heyst, outgoing ISAF commander, transferred command to another German three-star general, Goetz Gliemeroth from NATO.

The US-backed Afghan Government and the United Nations have repeatedly urged ISAF's expansion into the lawless provinces, where factional rivalries and a resurgent Taliban guerrilla movement pose mounting security problems for reconstruction work and elections due to be held next year.

But the peacekeeping force's role under NATO will remain confined to the capital, at least initially.

NATO spokesman Mark Laity said on Sunday the alliance was willing to discuss expanding peacekeeping operations beyond Kabul but wanted to settle down in the job first.