Several prominent Afghan political figures in the western province of Herat have welcomed a planned partial withdrawal of US-led foreign forces from their war-ravaged country next year.
Dozens of regional leaders and tribal elders told a political gathering in Shindand town that the Afghan national forces were ready to provide the security and defend their country.
The summit comes after the US-led NATO countries announced that they will partially withdraw their troops from Afghanistan in 2014. British Prime Minister David Cameron has also recently announced that London will withdraw almost half of the country’s 9,000 troops from Afghanistan in 2014.
However, the partial pullout contradicts agreement that calls for the full departure of foreign forces from Afghanistan by the end of next year.
According to the latest figures released by the website icasualties.org, 3,335 foreign soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan since the US-led war began in October 2001.
The increasing number of military casualties in Afghanistan has caused widespread anger in the US and other NATO member states, undermining public support for the Afghan war.
The US-led war in Afghanistan removed the Taliban from power, but insecurity continues to rise across the country, despite the presence of thousands of US-led troops.
JR/SS
This article originally appeared on: Press TV