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Afghanistan

Turkey contribution in Afghanistan important: US

NEW YORK (NNI): As the US-Turkey relationship has grown during past few years; a top Bush Administration official has said that the increasing contribution of Turkey in Afghanistan indicates the growing strategic relationship between the two countries. "Our success in sustaining and strengthening U.S.-Turkey cooperation in Afghanistan is particularly significant given the severe strains the war in Iraq initially placed on our two countries' relations," said Matt Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs in his address to the Turgot Ozal Memorial Lecture at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Praising Turkish contributions towards the war in Afghanistan, he said: "Turkey has now commanded the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan twice." Former Grand National Assembly Speaker and Foreign Minister Hikmet Cetin served as NATO's civilian representative in Kabul. Turkey now leads a provincial reconstruction team in Wardak Province north of Kabul, he said. "Security cooperation in Afghanistan thus emerged as a cornerstone of strategic partnership between the United States and Turkey," Bryza said. "At NATO's recent Bucharest Summit, Turkey and the United States joined our other Allies and Alliance partners to renew our long-term commitment to security and stability in Afghanistan. We have pledged to provide the forces, resources and flexibility necessary for success, so Afghanistan may never again become a haven for terrorists," he said. As such Turkey has an important contribution to ISAF and provincial reconstruction. "During the Paris Conference earlier this month, Turkey increased its original $100 million humanitarian assistance pledge for Afghanistan to $200 million," he said. Turkish firms have invested $1.5 billion in projects in Afghanistan since 2002, including schools and mosques, hospitals and health clinics, bridges and water wells. Turkey is also leading an effort to create a special investment zone along Afghanistan's border with Pakistan, which could play a key role in stabilizing that volatile region, he said

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