South Asia News
Danish soldiers call for Afghan exit strategy
Nov 4, 2009, 13:40 GMT
Copenhagen - Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller said on Wednesday there is no need to discuss an exit strategy for Danish forces serving in Afghanistan.
Moller was reacting to calls by several Danish officers quoted in the daily Jyllands-Posten as expressing doubts about the mission.
'The main problem for me is when I am asked to convince others that the mission is good and when I try to mention some successes in Afghanistan, I cannot,' Sergeant Jesper K Hansen told the daily.
Moller warned against discussing how long NATO forces would remain in Afghanistan, noting such a debate would strengthen the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
'We are there to prevent the Taliban and al-Qaeda from setting up training camps in Afghanistan,' Moller told Danish news agency Ritzau.
'They have trained between 20,000 and 30,000 terrorists from 1996 to 2001. If we leave Afghanistan, it will be destabilized, the moderates will be scared and the Taliban will use terror to regain power,' he added.
The Danish foreign minister is in a few weeks due to present a plan about transferring more responsibility to Afghan forces.
Denmark has some 500 troops in southern Afghanistan.
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