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US Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs John Taylor said on Thursday a two-day donor conference to fund reconstruction in Afghanistan will take place in Berlin from March 31.
Taylor, who visited Afghanistan earlier this week and is now in Baghdad to see the shape of reconstruction and economic progress, revealed the international meeting will take place on March 31 and April 1.
"The objective is to get additional pledges from countries," Taylor said in a conference call. "The United States plans to pledge more, but we can't say what that is yet," he added
Taylor said a decision still had to be made on where additional US funding for Afghanistan would be siphoned from - either from the fiscal 2004 budget or next year's.
The meeting of donor nations will take place two months before first-ever elections in Afghanistan in June.
Some officials from the European Union, one of the biggest donors to Afghan reconstruction since US-led forces toppled Taleban rulers in late 2001, say they fear the security situation will not allow for free and fair elections.
Taylor said he had travelled to the capital Kabul and to the north near the border with Tajikistan to see for himself progress in rebuilding the impoverished country.
Afghan Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai said last month during a Group of Seven meeting he was seeking $25 billion in reconstruction aid over the next 7 years and another $3.5 billion in budget support over the same time.
The G-7 meeting pledged to help Afghanistan with development priorities in health, education and infrastructure, and to help foster a climate for private investment.
Taylor said the United States would support a long-term donor strategy for Afghanistan but the focus was currently on short-term assistance.

Copyright Reuters, 2004

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