Northern Alliance will be one of four main groups taking part in the conference starting on Monday in Berlin. Representatives of Afghanistan`s former king, Mohammad Zaher Shah will also attend, but the Taliban will not be there, and Vendrell described the movement as being "on the verge of collapse." Alliance officials had been saying for days they were ready to attend but had held off formal acceptance until Tuesday.
Earlier, the head of the Northern Alliance, former Afghan president Burhanuddin Rabbani, said the opening session would be "symbolic" and that he was sticking by his demand that substantive decisions on the future of Afghanistan could only be taken at meetings held in this country.
The United States and its allies, however, wanted the conference on neutral ground. Afghanistan has been without a central government since the Taliban pulled out of the capital Kabul on Nov. 13, and the power vacuum has raised fears the country could again descend into violent anarchy.
The Northern Alliance strongly objected to the Taliban being included in the talks. However, there`s a widespread belief that the talks have little chance of succeeding if the Pashtuns, who account for more than half the country`s population, do not take part. Most Taliban leaders and supporters are Pashtuns.
Vendrell said that although the Taliban would not be present at next week`s talks, there would be representatives of the dominant ethnic Pashtun community.
The talks are open-ended, though Vendrell said he hoped this first round would be completed by Dec. 7. Bureau Report