U.S. President George W. Bush met NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Washington Friday with the two sides focusing on issues of Afghanistan and the agenda for the alliance's April summit in Romania.
"The United States is committed to the NATO mission in Afghanistan. We're committed to a comprehensive strategy that helps folks in Afghanistan realize security, at the same time, economic prosperity and political progress," Bush told reporters after talks with de Hoop Scheffer.
De Hoop Scheffer also pledged to continue NATO support for Afghanistan and fight against terror.
"All 26 NATO allies are there and we are there for the long haul. We are there to support President Karzai and the Afghan people. But we're also there because we're fighting terrorism, and we cannot afford to lose," he said.
On the Bucharest summit in April, the two leaders said that it would touch on the NATO's role in newly independent Kosovo; possible NATO membership for Croatia, Albania and Macedonia; efforts to combat computer crime; and a U.S. missile shield plan that has angered Russia.
Bush said he is looking forward to attending the summit "to make sure that NATO is a relevant organization aimed at bringing security and peace to the world."
All 26 NATO nations have soldiers in Afghanistan. They all agree the mission is their top priority. But the refusal of European allies to send more combat troops is forcing an already stretched U.S. military -- focused on the Iraq war -- to fill the gap, and it is straining the Western alliance.
The United States contributes one-third of NATO's 42,000-memberInternational Security Assistance Force mission, making it the largest participant, ahead of Britain with about 7,700 soldiers in Afghanistan. The U.S. has another 12,000 to 13,000 troops there involved in counterterrorism operations.
Source: Xinhua
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