Senator Kerry returns to Kabul for Karzai talks

[cal04]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N19276600.htm

Influential U.S. Senator John Kerry returned abruptly to Afghanistan on Thursday to see President Hamid Karzai, seeking to press him over a four-month deadline for private security contractors to be disbanded.

In Washington, Kerry's office confirmed that instead of returning to Washington, the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee had flown back to Kabul from neighboring Pakistan, where he surveyed damage from epic floods.

"Senator Kerry has returned to Kabul as part of his ongoing effort to assess conditions on the ground and will complete his meetings with President Karzai and U.S. officials and visit with U.S. soldiers," spokesman Fred Jones told Reuters.

(snip)
Kerry said before the order was issued that it was in Afghanistan's interests not to have a "whole bunch" of private security firms there but added a reasonable timeframe was "up for grabs."

[blm]

1. Hmmmm...I expect will be hearing from Obama on this soon after Kerry's return.

Thanks for finding this report.