Karzai Wants to Control Security by 2014

Addressing officials from 70 countries in a meeting to secure more aid for Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai called for his war-torn country to take over control of its security by 2014. Karzai said he was dedicated to fighting corruption and establishing peace, and that Afghan security forces will be in charge of some areas by the end of 2010. British Prime Minister David Cameron said it was a “realistic” goal to pull his country’s troops out of Afghanistan by 2014. But analysts say that Afghanistan is in large part controlled by insurgents, making Karzai’s goals quite ambitious. The remarks were part of a plea to boost the amount of foreign money funding the Afghan government to 50 percent of the budget while giving Afghans more control over it.