The international community must stand as united in helping to bring Afghanistan back into the family of nations as we stand in the fight against terrorism.

We must show steadfast determination in supporting the political process and helping the Afghan people rebuild their war-torn country.

As chairman of the Afghanistan Support Group (ASG), which met with the Interim Administration in Kabul last week, Norway is acutely aware of the many challenges facing Afghanistan.

But we are also firmly convinced that the Afghan people will be able to turn their country into a stable and thriving nation.

Three conditions are essential to succeed:

First, political stability and security are keys to progress. Without them, there can be no real recovery and no lasting economic development, and we risk that Afghanistan will once again become a breeding ground for warlords, drug barons and terrorists.

This is why we must provide every possible support to the Interim Administration and the political process – including the work being done by Special Representative Brahimi.

While there is widespread political support for the Interim Administration, financial support is unfortunately lacking.

We cannot – and must not – let underfunding of the Interim Administration derail the political process.

Second, the Afghans must be at the helm. Building the new Afghanistan is primarily the responsibility of the Afghan people. They are responsible for moving the political process forward. They must set the priorities, determine what kind of assistance is required and decide the pace of the reconstruction efforts.

The Afghan people should be able to count on the full backing of the international community in their efforts.

But the international community, too, has expectations. Expectations as to political progress, peaceful resolution of national conflicts, effective measures to combat corruption and drugs, and active promotion of democracy and human rights – in particular the rights of women and children.

Third, there must be adequate and coordinated assistance. Humanitarian aid, immediate recovery assistance and longer-term development efforts are all essential. A massive mobilization of resources is needed – extending far beyond the small group of traditional donors.

While making long-term commitments, we must not forget that the humanitarian crisis is still acute and is likely to continue for a considerable period of time. If we are not successful in the short term, longer-term efforts may well be meaningless.

Aid efforts must be stepped up gradually and adapted to Afghan priorities and their capacity to make effective use of the resources. There is an immediate need to strengthen the Interim Administration’s capacity for financial and programme management.

Both in the shorter and in the longer term, donor coordination is essential to secure the best possible use of the available resources.

It is crucial that all the implementing agencies work together – donor countries, international organizations and NGOs. The ASG countries expect the UN and the banks to act in concert and to complement each other. Improvement here is clearly possible.

To underpin the political process and help the Afghan authorities achieve control over the international aid effort, there is a clear need for close dialogue between the international community and the Interim Administration. This requires practical coordination mechanisms on the ground. As ASG chair, Norway will strive for effective coordination on the donor side in Kabul.

The Afghanistan Support Group has for many years been a flexible forum for coordination among the major donors.

The ASG must continue to fulfil this function for some time to come. The co-chairmanship of the ASG chair in the Implementation Group will help the donor community to maintain a coherent approach. As soon as possible, however, a Consultative Group chaired by the Afghans should be established.

The priorities presented by the Interim Administration and the preliminary Needs Assessment confirm the magnitude of the reconstruction tasks ahead of us.

But while the challenges are enormous, so is the international support for helping the Afghan people.

In closing, and in my capacity as Foreign Minister of Norway, I am pleased to announce that Norway will allocate the equivalent of approximately 40 million US dollars to Afghanistan this year.

This includes budgetary support to the Interim Administration, humanitarian aid and medium and long-term assistance based on the priorities of the Afghan Interim Administration.

We plan to channel a large part of our assistance through the Trust Fund administered by the World Bank, and hope that other donors will also choose to do the same.

The political roadmap for the future of Afghanistan has been agreed. Afghanistan is still the focus of world attention. But the window of opportunity will not remain open for long. We must therefore act now. Sincere and coordinated efforts by both the Afghan authorities and the international community are urgently required.

Thank you.

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