NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said Wednesday the transatlantic alliance had a "long term commitment" in Afghanistan and that it would be "irresponsible" to leave, DPA reported. "We have a long term military and political commitment in Afghanistan and it is very important that we can see this mission through successfully. It would be irresponsible to turn our back to the Afghan people and their government," Scheffer told reporters in Taranto, Italy, where he was attending a joint NATO naval exercise in the Mediterranean Sea. Scheffer's words came just hours after a Finnish soldier was killed and four Norwegian soldiers were wounded while on patrol in Afghanistan. Three German soldiers and six Afghan civilians were also killed in a suicide bomb attack in the northern Kunduz province on Saturday. Scheffer praised the German government for declaring its determination to stay with the Afghanistan mission. "That was, despite the drama and despite the loss of life, a very commendable position taken by the German government," he said. "That underlines the importance of being there and of staying there." He added: "We are fighting terrorism there and that is a frontline, and we should not allow the frontline to become a faultline. This is an absolute necessity."
