LONDON, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Though Afghan forces will take over by 2014, British and international forces will perform combat roles through the end of that year, an official said.
U.S. defense officials said military transition would start next year in preparation for a handover of security responsibilities by 2014. British Foreign Minister William Hague told lawmakers in London that an Afghanistan able to defend itself is a key priority for the international effort there.
"Central to this is the gradual handover of security responsibilities from international forces to the Afghan National Security Forces by the end of 2014, as we agreed at the Lisbon Summit in 2010," he said during his remarks. "British and (International Security Assistance Force) troops will continue to perform combat roles until the end of 2014."
Hague warned that there should be no false assumptions about the work left in Afghanistan but maintained the overall strategy for the country was the best option to prevent the country from being used as a safe-haven for terrorist groups.
The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a joint report published earlier this week, said they recorded 3,021 civilian deaths in Afghanistan in 2011, up 8 percent from the previous year.
Hague said, however, that violence in some parts of the country was declining though "the regional picture remains very varied."
