Afghan parliament call for special session to discuss US security pact

KABUL, Nov 22 (NNI): The lower house of the Afghan parliament – Wolesi Jirga called for a special session to start debate on the bilateral security agreement between Kabul and Washington on Sunday.

Lower house speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi said a special session would be organized on Sunday to discuss the agreement signed between the two nations late in September.

Ibrahimi further added that the session will hold talks on NATO Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) which was signed the same day when Afghan-US security deal was concluded.

He said the government has emphasized to finalize the two security agreements.

The bilateral security agreement between Afghanistan and United States was formally signed by US ambassador to Afghanistan James B. Cunningham and national security adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar on 30th September.

The Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) for the NATO forces was also inked during the signing ceremony on the same day.

The draft bilateral security agreement between Kabul and Washington was endorsed by majority during a gathering by tribal elders last year. However, the former President Hamid Karzai refused to sign the deal.

The agreement will pave the way for the presence of US troops to Afghanistan beyond 2014. The agreements will be forwarded to the senate house once they have been approved by lawmakers in the lower house of the parliament – Wolesi Jirga.