To Stop Bin Laden, End Afghan War, Kazakh Says "Bush is talking about the need for a long war"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - To have any hope of wrecking Osama bin Laden's alleged network of terror cells, the United States must end Afghanistan's civil war, a top aide to Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev said on Friday.

This was the same message the Central Asian state gave the United Nations two years ago, when it said the conflict between the hardline Taliban and its northern alliance enemies was a threat to international security, said the aide, Altymbek Sarsenbayev.

The advice from Sarsenbayev, Nazarbayev's national security adviser, in Washington to meet senior U.S. officials, was a reminder of the difficult task President Bush faces if he is serious about uprooting a network that one recent report says may include 34 states.

Nothing less than a global alliance for an Afghan peace process, an end to the arms flow, and elections with the help of emigres, will pull out the roots of bin Laden, the Saudi-born dissident accused of running camps in Afghanistan, where he is a guest of the Taliban, he said.

With Russia's help, Iran could be brought on board, one of the three countries arming the opponents of the hardline Islamic leadership, Sarsenbayev said.

``Where there is a conflict zone that cannot be controlled by the international community, there is a source of terrorism,'' he told Reuters in an interview.

The day that may have proven his theory right was September 11, when hijackers flew planes into landmarks in New York and Washington, leaving about 5,000 people dead or missing.

``If this attack was organized by bin Laden, then naturally he must be severely punished. Any other action will incite terrorists around the world,'' Sarsenbayev said.

``But if bin Laden is punished and the war in Afghanistan is not stopped, another bin Laden will appear,'' Sarsenbayev said.

The Saudi-born dissident wants the United States out of the Middle East and wants to overthrow Saudi Arabia's government, which allows U.S. troops to use its territory.

A chief suspect in the investigation into the attacks that flattened the World Trade Center and damaged the Pentagon, his cells may stretch throughout the Middle East and Africa and in Asia and Europe -- and even the United States itself.

So Washington is pushing as many countries as possible to take its side, beginning with Pakistan, the Taliban's original backer. Otherwise only Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates recognize the movement as Afghanistan's government.

This could mean building new relations with Iran, a country which the United States regards as a ``state sponsor'' of terrorism and opponent of the Middle East peace process, and giving Russia more of an inroad into Central Asia.

Russia, India and Iran met in Tajikistan on Thursday to discuss possible help to anti-Taliban forces, a diplomatic source said.

In a further sign of a common interest among unlikely allies, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization grouping Russia, China and Central Asian states said of Tuesday's attacks that international terrorism was a serious threat to humanity.

Sarsenbayev takes no delight in his country's close-up view of the situation in Afghanistan, from which it is separated only by far smaller, more volatile Central Asian states.

Enjoying relative economic success, it quivers at the thought of where the Taliban might be were it not for the arms that Sarsenbayev says Iran, Russia and Uzbekistan ship to the hardline Islamic rulers' foes in the northern United Front.

The aide's visit provided a well-timed opportunity to remind the United States what Nazarbayev had suggested the world do even before Washington decided to build a global coalition to root out the ``terrorists''.

In April, Nazarbayev told the United Nations a comprehensive approach was essential to end the war in Afghanistan, with involvement by many international institutions and countries.

The proposed line-up reads like the coalition Bush is now trying to build to fight a war against ``terrorism''.

It included the U.N. ``six plus two'' group -- China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, the United States and Russia. It pledged to end the war but did little.

The European Union, Asian states, Arab countries, other Central Asian states, international financial institutions and U.N. agencies had to join forces, Kazakhstan said.

``It's crucial to destroy the international terrorist camps, make the Taliban stop the war, make the others disarm, start a peace process, and then hold elections in the country and put a legitimate government in place,'' said Sarsenbayev.

This is the weak resolution the Senate is working on. Compare it to a real declaration of war from 1941

SJ 22 ES

107th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. J. RES. 22

JOINT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Senate and House of Representatives regarding the terrorist attacks launched against the United States on September 11, 2001.

Whereas on September 11, 2001, terrorists hijacked and destroyed four civilian aircraft, crashing two of them into the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, and a third into the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C.;

Whereas thousands of innocent Americans were killed and injured as a result of these attacks, including the passengers and crew of the four aircraft, workers in the World Trade Center and in the Pentagon, rescue workers, and bystanders;

Whereas these attacks destroyed both towers of the World Trade Center, as well as adjacent buildings, and seriously damaged the Pentagon; and

Whereas these attacks were by far the deadliest terrorist attacks ever launched against the United States, and, by targeting symbols of American strength and success, clearly were intended to intimidate our Nation and weaken its resolve: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

condemns

(2) extends its deepest condolences to the victims of these heinous and cowardly attacks, as well as to their families, friends, and loved ones;

(3) is certain that the people of the United States will stand united as our Nation begins the process of recovering and rebuilding in the aftermath of these tragic acts;

(4) commends the heroic actions of the rescue workers, volunteers, and State and local officials who responded to these tragic events with courage, determination, and skill;

the United States is entitled to respond under international law;

(6) thanks those foreign leaders and individuals who have expressed solidarity with the United States in the aftermath of the attacks, and asks them to continue to stand with the United States in the war against international terrorism;

support increased resources

supports the determination of the President, in close consultation with Congress,

(9) declares that September 12, 2001, shall be a National Day of Unity and Mourning, and that when Congress adjourns today, it stands adjourned out of respect to the victims of the terrorist attacks.

Passed the Senate September 12, 2001.

Compare that wimpy drivel to this:

JOINT RESOLUTION

Declaring that a state of war exists between the Imperial Government of Japan and the Government and the people of the United States and making provisions to prosecute the same.

Whereas the Imperial Government of Japan has committed unprovoked acts of war against the Government and the people of the United States of America:

Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the state of war between the United States and the Imperial Government of Japan which has thus been thrust upon the United States is hereby formally declared;

and the President is hereby authorized and directed to employ the entire naval and military forces of the United States and the resources of the Government to carry on war against the Imperial Government of Japan; and, to bring the conflict to a successful termination, all of the resources of the country are hereby pledged by the Congress of the United States.

Approved, December 8, 1941, 4:10 p.m. E.S.T.

Apparently there is some major funny business going on in the Senate, even in this time of "bi-partisanship".

I am disgusted.

Please US House save us from this insult to all who have died.

What, are we supposed to make friendly with Muslim states in Central Asia now?

Your dislike of NATO has clouded your mind, Pericles. You can no longer think straight.

Hoplite, do you enjoy being proven wrong and stupid by me all the time?

NATO has tried and failed to crack the Central Asian nut. NATO failed because it supported fundamentalist Islamic movements and refused to help former USSR Central Asian states fight those Jihadist groups. Russia on the other hand was and is eager to help.

And those Central Asian states are members of Russia's Commonwealth of Independent States and are all secular republics.

NATO: Interview -- Secretary-General Robertson On Central Asia

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

By Askold Krushelnycky

NATO Secretary-General George Robertson is due to visit four Central Asian countries next week. In a phone interview, he tells RFE/RL correspondent Askold Krushelnycky what he hopes the trip will yield and what he wants to achieve during his tenure as head of the military alliance.

Prague, 28 June 2000 (RFE/RL) -- In recent years, the 19-member NATO alliance has sought to establish the same sort of ties with Central Asian countries as it did earlier with former Warsaw Pact countries in Central and Eastern Europe. George Robertson, who became NATO's secretary-general last year, wants to deepen those ties when he heads to the region next week. In a telephone interview, he told RFE/RL:

"I would hope in going to Central Asia I would underline the importance of this region to NATO and to the West in general. It is an area of enormous importance and significance thanks to its history and its ethnic, religious, and linguistic composition. And, of course, its economic potential and its geopolitical location have pushed it right up to the top of the agenda. So I'll be taking a message of friendship and of partnership, and I'll be in many ways emphasizing my own commitment to making sure that we build partnership and cooperation with the countries of Central Asia."

Robertson will visit Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan. Those countries have been members of NATO's Partnership for Peace program since the mid-1990s. And all of them participate in the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, or EAPC, where 47 nations discuss and plan cooperative activities. Robertson said he is hoping for even greater cooperation:

"I believe there are a lot of new opportunities for cooperation to come about -- in the defense field, in the area of defense reform, of civil emergency planning, of the NATO Science for Peace project, in the environmental programs that NATO runs. All of these are areas which are outlined in the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council's action plan for the next two years. and they are all areas where the Central Asian republics could play a bigger part and find themselves really then in the mainstream of cooperative and partnership activities, which would bring them in line not just with Russia and their immediate neighbors, but also the countries of western Europe and the United States."

Last week, CIS defense ministers -- Central Asian ministers among them -- attended a meeting in Moscow where Russia was once again seen as trying to strengthen its influence in Central Asia. But Robertson said he does not foresee potential tension over Central Asia between NATO and Russia:

"There's absolutely no competition between the NATO countries and Russia over activities in the Central Asian area. It is the opposite of competition. We want cooperation, and indeed Russia's new rapprochement with NATO gives us an ideal opportunity of giving that signal loud and clear: that we're interested in building a more stable and a more predictable part of the world where there is an enormous potential for trouble. And it's in the interests of both Russia and of the West that we cooperate to the maximum extent in these areas."

Earlier this month, the three Baltic countries -- all keen to join NATO -- expressed concern that the alliance would not allow them to join because of Russia's strong opposition to NATO's eastward expansion. Robertson said that he is pleased that relations with Russia, which had cooled because of last year's NATO bombing campaign against Yugoslavia, have recently warmed. But he makes it clear that Russia does not have a veto on any country's application to join NATO -- even the countries of central Asia.

"Every country has the right to make its own choice and its own security arrangements, and obviously Russia has got a centuries-long tradition in that area. But on the other hand, the countries of that area also want to make contact with the West and, through the Partnership for Peace, with NATO -- and I think that the combination of the two adds up to a very successful formula."

But he said that any discussion today of NATO considering a new status for the Central Asian countries would be premature:

"Well, I think we've got to walk before we run, and that is why I'm very keen that the Central Asian countries get more engaged in the Partnership for Peace. That offers exercises, it offers training, it offers attendance at NATO colleges, English-language training, and a lot of cooperation in civil emergency planning, NATO's Science for Peace program, and indeed the NATO environmental program. So these are areas where I want much more activity to take place in the Central Asian countries."

Robertson said he hopes that Central Asian countries could become involved in peacekeeping operations alongside NATO, and he discussed that possibility with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev, who visited NATO headquarters in Brussels this week.

"I think it's a very realistic goal, because of course there already is the embryo of a peacekeeping battalion for Central Asia -- it's called Centrasbat -- and it's something that I've spoken about with the president of Kazakhstan, President Nazarbaev, when he visited NATO headquarters. And I've got high hopes that they will be able to put in place, maybe in Bosnia or Kosovo, that battalion -- both to help the peacekeeping that is going on there and also as a very visible signal that the countries of Central Asia are coming together and are developing their own positive links between themselves."

Robertson said that some of the Central Asian countries have already shown their desire for closer cooperation with NATO:

"In Uzbekistan, we've got a country that is already engaging with the alliance in a broad spectrum of consultations and cooperation activities. For example, in response to the hostage crisis in southern Kyrgyzstan last summer, the EAPC has conducted a series of consultations of direct interest to the countries in question. So this whole issue here of the fight against terrorism is one of the priority issues of the Partnership for Peace."

International human rights watchdogs and Western governments have criticized poor democratic standards and frequent human rights abuses in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and, to a lesser extent, in Kyrgyzstan. But Robertson said he does not believe NATO's contact with these countries implies that the alliance condones their shortcomings, nor that it harms NATO's image.

"One of the benefits that we get through the Partnership for Peace and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council is to spread the message about the rule of law, about democratic institutions, about democratic control of the military and the benefits of applying democratic norms to the development of a country. So, although there are those who raise questions about the state of democracy in some of the Central Asian countries, we believe that engagement with countries allows better opportunity for preaching and showing the lessons of how democracy is actually good, not just for a country's vitality, but also for its economic progress."

Some of the former Soviet republics have formed military ties among themselves, such as the GUUAM countries -- Georgia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and Moldova. GUUAM nations have said that one of the main roles of a joint military unit will be to protect oil pipelines running westwards from Azerbaijan. Their alliance is also seen as an attempt to counter the political and economic might of their recent colonial master, Russia.

Asked about whether NATO would help in the development of GUUAM, Robertson said:

"Very much so, because NATO is not in the business of trying to replace existing cooperative structures in this or any other region. And indeed, we have tried in the past to develop cooperation between countries, whether it is bilateral or multilateral. And indeed, the GUUAM countries took the opportunity at the recent EAPC ministerial meeting in Florence, in Italy, to have a GUUAM ministerial meeting at that point. So there are a whole series of regional set-ups which exist and, insofar as they bring countries together in a cooperative way to deal with common problems, then NATO very much encourages that and will continue to support it."

Robertson said he sees his mission as building on NATO's work so far. He said the alliance's achievements consist, first, of keeping the peace with its Warsaw Pact adversaries for 40 years, and then playing a key role in bringing peace to Bosnia and Kosovo, where NATO troops went into action for the first time in NATO's history. He then described what he wants to accomplish in the future:

"I see the next period for NATO in shaping the peace, shaping the security environment for a generation to come and that is where the Partnership for Peace and the EAPC and indeed NATO enlargement fit into that process."

Robertson also said he believes that Ukraine is an essential piece in Europe's security architecture:

"I see the relationship with Ukraine as being critically important to the eastern part of the European continent. And it's a very good relationship, which took the whole of the North Atlantic Council to Kyiv earlier this year."

The NATO secretary-general said that he hopes improving relations with Russia and growing cooperation among the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council will produce a zone of stability and predictability that will help prevent the recurrence of past troubles.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.