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Mr. President, thank you very much for your warm words of welcome.  It is indeed a great pleasure for me to visit Afghanistan once again, and first of all, let me congratulate you, Mr. President, on your second presidential term, and may I also congratulate you on the appointment of a new cabinet. 

I decided to visit Afghanistan immediately after your appointment of a new cabinet to first of all reaffirm my commitment and NATO’s commitment to Afghanistan but also to convey a very clear message that we are here to protect the Afghan people, to assist you in a gradual transition to Afghan lead across the board from security to development, and last but not least, I am here to express that we base our cooperation on partnership, which is characterized by close dialogue.

I would like to stress three points.  My first message is to the Afghan people.  I know that some are wondering how long international forces will stay.  More specifically, they are worried that we will leave too soon, as has happened in the past, and let there be no doubt the international community will stand with you, will protect you and help rebuild your country until you’re ready to stand on your own and prevent terrorism from taking root in this country once again.  Yes, we are paying a heavy price, as are the Afghan people and the Afghan security forces, but we know that the price of inaction, the price of leaving too early, would be far higher.  So we will stay the course, it is as simple as that.  

My second message is this.  In 2010, there will be new momentum.  The ISAF mission will be much larger, and the forces are already flowing in.  We will focus much more on protecting the population, protecting the roads, and protecting development projects.  We will train more Afghan army and Afghan police, and starting next year, they will start to take the lead where and when they are ready.  Let me repeat that: where and when they are ready.  This transition will be condition-based, not calendar-driven, and where that allows us to draw down our forces all the better, but we are now in the phase of increasing, not decreasing, and that increase is an investment in transition.  This mission is now entering a new phase, a phase that will bring more security and more development to the Afghan people, a phase that will lay the groundwork for greater Afghan leadership in its own affairs, and a phase which will see that transition begin already next year.

Finally, I’d like to welcome the commitments President Karzai has made to fight corruption and improve governments.  They are very welcome, but as President Karzai has said himself, these measures are not first and foremost for the benefit of foreigners.  They are to the benefit of the Afghan people, who will see better governance, better delivery of services from the people they bravely elected.  That is why we support these efforts.  So let me once again, in conclusion, Mr. President, thank you for welcoming me here.