Officials from more than seventy countries are meeting in the Netherlands to discuss the future of Afghanistan. All of Afghanistan’s neighbors, including Iran, are attending. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to ask conference delegates for their countries’ support for Washington’s escalation of the war. President Obama has said he plans to send an extra 17,000 soldiers and 4,000 advisers to Afghanistan. The Red Cross has warned that the planned US surge is likely to mean more civilian casualties. The Red Cross urged the conference to “consider the plight of civilians as a matter of urgency.” On Monday, US special envoy Richard Holbrooke spoke about the importance of Iran’s role in the summit.

Richard Holbrooke: “The presence of Iran here is obvious. How can you talk about Afghanistan and exclude one of the countries that’s a bordering, neighboring state? This is absolutely clear. The creation of the current government in Afghanistan in the Bonn negotiations of 2002 involved Iran, and they played an important role. And when the Dutch government decided to invite them, it seemed to us to be the most logical thing in the world.”

Sayeed Jawed of the Agency Coordinating Body for Afghan Relief called on the international community to fight government corruption.

Sayeed Jawed: “Normally, you know, the security is coming if you have a good governance. So we would ask the international community to work for the good government, which provides situation for development and that will guarantee the security.”