General Joseph Dunford, the Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, has endorsed the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) and assured that its signing would enable the political and security transition to be done the right way.
The BSA is currently pending, despite being approved by a Loya Jirga back in November, it awaits President Hamid Karzai's signature. The U.S. has pushed for Karzai to sign the agreement as soon as possible, mounting pressure on him, but the Afghan President has remained firm in his demands that the U.S. first help kick-start Taliban peace talks and end unilateral operations on Afghan homes.
However, many experts have criticized Karzai focusing on the needs of the Afghan security forces, and arguing that the country does not have the freedom to play around wight he BSA, but rather needs it desperately. The Afghan forces are said to need better equipment and training for the air force, intelligence and heavy weaponry.
The BSA would ensure a residual force of U.S. troops stay behind in Afghanistan after the NATO combat mission ends in December. It would also lock-in military aid that has been promised, estimated to the amount of 4.1 billion USD at the moment.
"The BSA is the way to peace in Afghanistan and a way to increase peoples' hope for their future," General Dunford said. "Signing this agreement will help the political and security transition."
Afghanistan will see a pivotal event in its modern political history take place in April, with the Presidential and Provincial Council elections, that could play a major role in shaping the security outlook of the coming years. Still, if a BSA is not in place by then, Dunford and his likeminded friends in Washington have stated that Afghanistan would face serious trouble.
"The transition process will go well, but only if the international community's support continues and the capacity of these forces is improved," General Dunford said.
The General also said that if the security forces under his command were asked to help in maintaining security for the elections alongside the Afghan forces, they would do so.