Afghanistan exit: confusion among Nato defence ministers

Confusion prevailed in Brussels on Thursday over the plans for Nato's combat operations in Afghanistan, amid declarations that the military alliance wants Afghan forces to take over full responsibility for their country's security in mid-2013.
Leaders from Nato countries had agreed on 2014 as the year they would withdraw their combat troops from the country, leaving behind only troops to train and assist Afghan security forces. But on his way to the Belgian capital to meet with his 27 Nato counterparts, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta had told reporters that 2013 would be a "critical year" as "we'll be going into the final transitions." "Our goal is to complete all of that transition in 2013 and then hopefully by mid- to the latter part of 2013, we'll be able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advice and assist role," he said, according to a transcript provided by the Pentagon.
Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he also expects the handover of security responsibility to the Afghan security forces to be completed by mid-2013. But he spoke of the role of Nato troops then only "gradually" evolvving "from combat to support. Nato diplomats insisted that the alliance's troops could still be involved in combat through 2014, as speculation spread that the alliance was accelerating the end of its operations.
They said Panetta had joined the other defence ministers in agreeing that everyone would be "in together, out together." Spanish Defence Minister Pedro Morenes also told reporters that any speculation about a "speed up" of the withdrawal "does not correspond to reality."
"There will be a transfer of leadership responsibility to Afghan forces," he said. "This doesn't mean that during this transition there will not or could not be very serious incidents that we will have to respond to with our armed forces there." British Defence Minister Philip Hammond agreed. "As provinces and districts enter transition, ISAF's role changes to one of support, and will do until 2014," he said, referring to the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force. "At the end of 2014 transition will be complete, and the combat role will end."
German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere spoke of Nato soldiers simply moving "from the driver's seat to the passenger seat." The debate about the wrap-up of the Afghanistan mission had been spurred by French President Nicolas Sarkozy last week, when he set late 2013 as the departure date for his country's combat troops - following the killings of four French soldiers by an Afghan soldier.
Defence Minister Gerard Longuet intended to make clear in Brussels that France does not plan to "dissociate itself from the alliance," one diplomat said before the meeting, noting that French troops will also train and assist Afghans through 2014 and beyond. The ministers were also scheduled to discuss the support Afghan security forces will receive in the longer term, ahead of a Nato summit in May at which leaders will "make clear Nato's commitment to Afghanistan beyond 2014," spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said.