Miliband visits Afghanistan, paving way for London conference
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British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has arrived in Afghanistan for a two-day visit that will include a series of meetings with political leaders, British troops and Afghan journalists, the Foreign Ministry announced on Friday.
The trip is part of the British international diplomatic push to pave the way for success at Afghanistan: The London Conference on Jan. 28.
Miliband will use the visit to stress the need for Afghan leadership supported by an international partnership the main theme of the London Conference.
Speaking in the House of Commons before his trip, he said the London Conference will therefore focus on upgrading the international effort in three key areas: security, governance and development and regional relations.
In Helmand province, he will meet Governor Gulab Mangal and British and the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops as well as civilian Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) staff.
Partnering with the Afghan National Security Forces is part of the transition strategy that will be a key area for discussion at the London Conference.
Miliband told parliamentary members that the conference will focus on how international forces can help mentor, partner and develop the Afghan National Security Forces.
"ISAF has already trained and equipped 96,000 members of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and the Afghan National Police (ANP) are also now about 90,000 strong. The current target for the end of this year is 134,000 ANA and 109,000 ANP and we will do everything we can to ensure that those targets are met and ideally exceeded," he said.
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