US: NATO must prevail in Afghanistan by end of '08

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Published: APRIL 19, 2007 02:24
A senior State Department official said Wednesday that NATO-led forces in Afghanistan have only until the end of 2008 to achieve success over the Taliban. Assistant Secretary of Daniel Fried said allied forces have been on the attack this year, as mountain snows began to melt, in an effort to head off an expected Taliban offensive. "The much-heralded spring offensive has turned out to be ours," Fried said in a speech at the Center for International Policy. The allied force have "seized the momentum this spring," said Fried, who heads the European affairs bureau. He pointed to recent allied success in securing a dam in Helmand Province that is a major source of electric power for the region.