14 December 2001

U.S. Establishes Diplomatic Presence in Kabul This Weekend

State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher said December 14 that the U.S. expects to establish its diplomatic presence in Kabul this weekend. Ambassador James Dobbins, who was in London December 14 for meetings with British officials, will travel to Kabul on December 15 to set up the U.S. liaison office with the interim Afghan government, Boucher said, briefing reporters in Washington.

The American flag that will be raised over the U.S. facility in Kabul is the same flag that was lowered from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Boucher added. (The U.S. Embassy in Kabul was closed in 1989.)

In response to a question about the level of commitment to human rights in the new Afghan government, the spokesman said, "The Bonn Agreement that the Afghan parties reached commits the interim administration to establish an independent human rights commission.... And this remains an important goal of the United States."

Describing reaction to the Usama bin Laden tape that was released by the Department of Defense on December 13, Boucher said strong statements from Saudi Arabia, from Turkey, and from the United Arab Emirates condemn the actions and attitudes represented in the tape. "The United Arab Emirates has talked about the tape leaving no room for about Usama bin Laden's role [in the September 11 terrorist attacks]," Boucher said.

Following are excerpts from the transcript of the December 14 State Department noon briefing:

Question: Okay. Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have urged the United States and other nations involved in the negotiations to rebuild a new temporary or interim government for Afghanistan to make human rights issues an important part of the rebuilding of the nation, with of course the consultation of the Afghanistan population.

Has Secretary Powell or the Bush Administration considered those issues, and would they plan to make that a part of the US efforts to assist in this endeavor?

Mr. Boucher: Human rights has been very much a part of this endeavor. After the horrible excesses of the Taliban and some of the others who have been in Afghanistan, I think Afghans themselves understand this to be a critical issue. The Bonn Agreement that the Afghan parties reached commits the interim administration to establish an independent human rights commission. That commission's duties will include monitoring, investigating violations and developing institutions to protect human rights. And this remains an important goal of the United States.

So as we work with a new administration, we will be looking to them to implement these provisions that they have agreed to, and to protect human rights.

....

Question: Back to Afghanistan. Ambassador Dobbins is apparently in London, meeting with different allies and groups interested in helping to form the interim security force. Can you tell us how those talks are going? If we have gotten any results yet?

Mr. Boucher: I think you just stole everything I had to tell you on it. Ambassador Dobbins is in London today for meetings with British officials. (Laughter.) He will be traveling to the region tomorrow. And no, I don't have an update yet of his discussions.

Question: (Inaudible.)

Mr. Boucher: To the region. To the South Asian, Central Asian kind of region. (Laughter.)

Question: Is he carrying a brand-new flag?

Mr. Boucher: No, no. We're going to use the old one. No, the old flag from our Embassy in Kabul.

The State Department team is still inside Afghanistan at our embassy. We are continuing the logistical preparations to reestablish our diplomatic presence soon. We expect to be able to do that in the next few days. And, as we've told you, Ambassador Dobbins will head in for that purpose, probably over the weekend.

Question: I don't want to get bogged down on what some might think is trivial --

Mr. Boucher: Well, it was important to us.

Question: Is he going to be carrying the old flag in with him?

Mr. Boucher: I don't know if he is actually carrying it or not, frankly.

Question: When you say "diplomatic presence," do you mean physically the building? Or do you have any update for us on how recognition of the new government is going to go?

Mr. Boucher: Initially, we are going to be there as a liaison office with the interim government. So, no, I don't have any more formal discussion of it than that. At this point, diplomatic presence means people. And people like me -- well, people who are assigned over there and willing to take the job, as opposed to people like me. (Laughter.)

But, no, to have diplomats out there who can work with the interim government, who can support them and who can help in this process which we are getting established and creating a broad-based government for Afghanistan so it can be a stable country and society.

Question: Back to Terri's original part of the question, the meeting in London, can you tell us who else is taking part? Is the UN taking part? Are the US military parties taking part?

Mr. Boucher: No, I can't at this point. I think it is a British meeting and they will have to talk about that.

Question: Just to go back to Ambassador Dobbins' plans, are you saying that he is going to be now moving to Kabul over the weekend to take residence and officially open the liaison office?

Mr. Boucher: That is the intention -- to establish our diplomatic presence, is the way --

Question: Will he be staying there for how long?

Mr. Boucher: As long as General Zinni is in the Middle East. (Laughter.)

No, he will be establishing our diplomatic presence there, running our diplomatic presence there and maintaining ties with the interim government.

Question: (Inaudible) diplomatic presence there (inaudible) one of the largest AID missions in the world. And my guess is that the liaison office status will be relatively brief and move to full embassy quickly, right?

Mr. Boucher: As soon as I can work out the process of accreditation, I will get you information on that. But, yes, I have to find out some stuff from the lawyers on how that process works from here on in. But certainly, we intend to have a presence. We don't necessarily need to run the entire aid program from Afghanistan. We've run it for many years from outside of Afghanistan and I'm sure people inside the country will have a role to play. So we will decide on staffing levels and functions and things like that.

But I think it is important for the United States to be there, for us to be able to work with the interim government as they get themselves established, as they make their presence felt throughout the country, and as they take charge of the affairs of Afghanistan.

Question: Richard, can you say if the tape, the bin Laden tape that was released yesterday, whether that has been sent out to embassies in the region and how the US -- what sort of feedback you've gotten from --

Mr. Boucher: I think the tape that was released yesterday either has been or is being -- I'm not quite sure of the transmission times -- sent out to our embassies. We are also providing today to the Arabic media an Arabic language version with Arabic transcript of the tape so that people can watch it, people who speak Arabic can watch it in the original language with the subtitles and the sound in Arabic. So that's being provided to the Arabic media. That too will go out through our embassy satellite system to embassies around the world to make available to broadcasters and others who might want to see it.

As far as reaction goes, I think we have seen quite a bit of reaction around the world. I have seen a very strong statement from Saudi Arabia talking about the tape displays the cruel and inhuman face of a murderous criminal. It rejects and condemns the attitudes and actions that are represented there, hoping the perpetrators of this horrific crime be brought to justice. A lot of different reactions, a strong statement from Turkey. For a Muslim to accuse another of being an infidel is the greatest of crimes against our religion and the greatest of sins, one of the clerics said, a lot of reaction in Turkey I think is quite strong. Not the words of a normal person.

The United Arab Emirates has talked about the tape leaving no room for doubt about Usama bin Laden's role. So I have seen, just combing through the wires this morning, quite a bit of reaction. We realize there is some reporting out there about people who don't want to believe what they're seeing, but I guess we would say, just let them watch it.

Question: Why did you feel it was necessary to put those subtitles on there, since it's in Arabic?

Mr. Boucher: The sound is pretty bad. And I think it is easier for people to follow it if it's there. I think there has been praise for the quality of the transcription and the translation. Certainly of the English translation, I have seen a number of Arab scholars or scholars of the language talk about how good the translation was. So I think there is not much question of that. It is just easier to follow with the Arabic on the bottom.

Question: Richard, just for clarification, the reaction you read us, like the UAE's, that leaves no room for doubt, you are getting off wire reports, or are you getting that official, through official channels transmitted by embassies?

Mr. Boucher: Some of it we have gotten through official channels. Some of it we have gotten off wire reports. I think anybody that did a scan would probably find the same sorts of things.

Question: What about the -- have you heard any governments or government-run newspapers or media saying they still don't believe it?

Mr. Boucher: Not that I saw in my search this morning. But I don't claim to have checked everything everywhere.