Foreign Minister Tuomioja to attend the international conference on Afghanistan

Press release 327/2011
2 December 2011

Minister for Foreign Affairs Erkki Tuomioja. will attend the international conference on the stabilisation of Afghanistan, to be held in Bonn on Monday, 5 December. This conference marks the tenth anniversary of the first Bonn conference that laid the foundation for Afghanistan’s present government structures. At the same time, the conference continues the series of international meetings on Afghanistan, the latest of which was held in Kabul in summer 2011.

The principal goal of the Bonn conference is to show the international community’s long-term commitment to support for Afghanistan. The transfer of responsibility for security from the international forces to Afghans themselves, which began in summer 2011, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2014. In Bonn, the international community will confirm that support for Afghanistan will continue after 2014 as well. The support will focus on development cooperation, civilian crisis management and the training of security officials. In addition, the conference will review how the transfer of responsibility for security and the national reconciliation process have progressed and will discuss regional issues and Afghanistan’s economy.

The conference will be chaired by President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai, with Germany and the UN as co-chairs. Nearly 100 countries and international organisations will participate in the conference; about 65 delegations will be at ministerial level. Before the actual conference, Minister Tuomioja will meet with women representatives of Afghan civil society organisations.

Additional information: First Secretary Sanna Selin, tel. +358 9 1605 5594, Katja Pehrman, Diplomatic Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 9 1605 5005