Afghanistan.

• Position: UN's peacekeeping efforts - Peacewatch

"The situation in Afghanistan remains precarious. Success in United Nations peace efforts remains elusive. The military situation is dangerously fluid and may soon deteriorate further with the onset of the spring thaw", Secretary-General Kofi Annan reported on 16 March. Nevertheless, "despite the continuous suffering of the Afghan people, the warring factions have not heeded the repeated appeals for peace and appear determined to pursue the military option", he stated. "However, I remain convinced that a negotiated settlement is the only solution to this long-standing conflict and that the United Nations is the most appropriate forum to bring this about. No one should imagine that a military victory by one party over the others will resolve the Afghan problem in the long term", the Secretary-General stressed.

To that end, he proposed to convene a "meeting of concerned countries", in order to "reassess the situation following recent political/military developments and to discuss how best to promote a negotiated settlement of the conflict, including reinforcing the United Nations peacemaking efforts".

Appeal for $133 million

An appeal for $133 million to ensure the continuation of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan - a war-torn country with the highest rates of infant, childhood and maternal mortality in Asia - was launched by the United Nations on 3 December. Prepared in consultation with United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the donor community, the appeal was to provide urgent humanitarian assistance, while addressing the needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction throughout the country. The programmes included support for the return of refugees, food aid, essential health services, mine clearance and the rehabilitation of basic infrastructure in urban and rural areas.

The people of Afghanistan faced their eighteenth winter at war, with some 500,000 persons in Kabul alone depending on food relief to survive it, the Department of Humanitarian Affairs (DHA) reported. The...