Senior Afghans discuss civilian oversight of the armed forces
High-ranking Afghan officials engaged in inter-ministerial dialogue on the civilian oversight of the armed forces, during a seminar at the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy, Baku, from 3 to 7 March 2014. The workshop paved the way for further cooperation between Afghanistan, NATO and its partners in the field of defence education and institutional development. This activity supported the sharing of lessons learned and their integration in national strategic planning.
“This seminar comes as we enter into a decisive stage – in the midst of the elections and against the backdrop of ongoing insecurity, we are in need of strong management and leadership, starting with the civilian oversight of the armed forces,” said Major General Mohammad Qasem Wardak, Chief of Military General Policies and Human Resources, who led the Afghan delegation. “As providers of resources and policy makers, civilians play a critical role in military planning and can contribute to finding effective and efficient ways to win the fight against insecurity.”
This was the third annual Workshop on Civilian Oversight of the Armed Forces, which is organised as part of the Defence Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) with Afghanistan. DEEPs are tailored programmes through which the Alliance advises partners on how to build, develop and reform public institutions that deal with security, defence and military affairs.
Building the capacity of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) in critical areas of need, through defence education, is an important element of the Declaration on Enduring Partnership, which was signed by NATO and Afghanistan at the Lisbon Summit in November 2010.
Mapping progress
Representatives responsible for operations, personnel management and policy development in the Afghan General Staff, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Foreign Affairs took part in the workshop. They worked together over the course of the week to review national security policy documents and practice, take stock of progress made, and develop strategies to address challenges central to the national objectives with regard to the civilian oversight of the armed forces.
“This seminar provided senior Ministry of Defence, General Staff and Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials a common environment, to consider the elements needed to tackle in a comprehensive manner the essential issues of the civilian oversight of the armed forces with an enhanced awareness of a whole of government approach to set up such a system,” said Colonel Stan Anton, PhD, Director of the Centre for Strategic and Defence Studies of the National Defence University of Romania, which provided a team to co-lead the seminar in cooperation with NATO's Political Affairs and Security Policy Division.
“This workshop is timely, because Afghanistan will take control of security in 2014. This process is directly related to building effective and mutually integrated national civilian security structures and armed forces that can ensure peace in the country,” stressed Ambassador Azar Azimov, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan.