U.S. Secretary of State Kerry: Afghanistan's Defense Minister Could Sign Security Pact Instead Of Karzai

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry addresses a news conference during a NATO foreign ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels December 3, 2013. Credit: REUTERS/Francois Lenoir

Defense Chief Could Sign Afghan Pact Instead Of Karzai: Kerry -- Reuters

(Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry suggested on Tuesday that Afghanistan's defense minister or government, instead of a reluctant President Hamid Karzai, could sign a security pact enabling some U.S. troops to stay in the country after 2014.

An assembly of Afghan elders, the Loya Jirga, last month endorsed the security deal with the United States, but Karzai said he might not sign it until after elections next April.

The delay has irritated the United States and its allies, which want to get on with planning for the smaller, NATO-led training mission that is to stay on in Afghanistan after 2014, when most foreign troops that have been battling Taliban insurgents will have pulled out.

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My Comment: This is a VERY BAD idea.