Event Recap
Afghanistan faced a stark reality as the United States prepared to withdraw its troops from the country after two decades on the ground. The looming September deadline underscored the urgent need for robust, sustained, and coordinated international action in Afghanistan to compensate for the security, political, and humanitarian consequences of the withdrawal.
For months, high-level experts, officials, and scholars from the United States, Afghanistan, and Europe had come together to study and advance solutions for the future of Afghanistan as part of the Atlantic Council / Rockefeller Brothers Fund Strategic Dialogues. Chaired by Secretary Madeleine Albright, Rector Federica Mogherini, and Chairperson Shaharzad Akbar, the Dialogues sought to look beyond the current moment and focus on a long-term strategic outlook that ensures stability in Afghanistan in line with Afghan, US, and European interests and values.
As Afghanistan and its partners in the United States and Europe prepared to chart a course for the future, the Dialogues group released the Transatlantic Charter on Afghan Sovereignty, Security, and Development, a landmark document that proposes key tenets for the trilateral relationship: the essential need for deeper cooperation and coordination with Afghans as critical partners; the understanding that durable peace must be Afghan-led and Afghan-owned; the importance of reaching a strategic consensus on relations between Afghanistan and its neighbors based on non-interference, sovereignty, and territorial integrity; and the critical necessity of moving beyond short-term deadlines and instead adopting a long-term perspective in advancing peace, security, and stability in Afghanistan.
The Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center hosted an expert discussion on April 23, 2021, on the future of Afghanistan and the exclusive launch of the Transatlantic Charter on Afghanistan as part of the Strategic Dialogues on and with Afghanistan.
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Featuring
Secretary Madeleine Albright
Former US Secretary of State
Chairperson Shaharzad Akbar
Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission
Rector Federica Mogherini
Former EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security
Ambassador James Cunningham
Former US Ambassador to Afghanistan;
Non-resident senior fellow, Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center
Welcome remarks by
Fred Kempe
President & CEO
Atlantic Council
Introductory remarks by
Stephen Heintz
President & CEO
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Moderated by
Roger Cohen
Chief Correspondent in Paris and former Op-Ed Columnist
The New York Times
Strategic dialogues on Afghanistan
Related content
The South Asia Center is the hub for the Atlantic Council’s analysis of the political, social, geographical, and cultural diversity of the region. At the intersection of South Asia and its geopolitics, SAC cultivates dialogue to shape policy and forge ties between the region and the global community.
The Rockefeller Brothers Fund advances social change that contributes to a more just, sustainable, and peaceful world.
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