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UN envoy in Kabul to facilitate govt formation
U.N. envoy Fransesc Vendrell on Sunday will try to persuade Afghanistan`s resurgent Northern Alliance to meet soon with rival tribes so that a broad-based government can be put in place.
U.N. envoy Fransesc Vendrell on Sunday will try to persuade Afghanistan`s resurgent Northern Alliance to meet soon with rival tribes so that a broad-based government can be put in place.
Vendrell, who landed at Bagram airport on a UN plane, will also be meeting former president Buranhuddin Rabbani, who returned to Kabul on Saturday.
Bagram illustrated some of the difficulties Vendrell faces.
London has tried to calm fears among Alliance leaders about an 85-strong advance party of British soldiers that arrived on Friday to secure the airport for humanitarian aid missions. Foreigners on Afghan soil are often viewed with suspicion. The Pakistani, Arab and Chechen al Qaeda fighters of Saudi-born bin Laden are deeply unpopular among many Afghans.
Nevertheless, a multinational force of peacekeepers for a country ravaged by two decades of civil war is on the agenda for Vendrell`s talks with Rabbani and other Alliance leaders.
Senior Northern Alliance figures said that as along as they maintained security in Kabul, there would be no need for an international peacekeeping force.
The U.N. says the Northern Alliance is obstructing efforts to arrange a crucial meeting on the country`s political future. The Alliance wants the talks to take place in Kabul, while the U.N. wants a neutral location.
Bureau Report
Bagram illustrated some of the difficulties Vendrell faces.
London has tried to calm fears among Alliance leaders about an 85-strong advance party of British soldiers that arrived on Friday to secure the airport for humanitarian aid missions. Foreigners on Afghan soil are often viewed with suspicion. The Pakistani, Arab and Chechen al Qaeda fighters of Saudi-born bin Laden are deeply unpopular among many Afghans.
Nevertheless, a multinational force of peacekeepers for a country ravaged by two decades of civil war is on the agenda for Vendrell`s talks with Rabbani and other Alliance leaders.
Senior Northern Alliance figures said that as along as they maintained security in Kabul, there would be no need for an international peacekeeping force.
The U.N. says the Northern Alliance is obstructing efforts to arrange a crucial meeting on the country`s political future. The Alliance wants the talks to take place in Kabul, while the U.N. wants a neutral location.
Bureau Report