ALISSA J RUBIN After months of negotiations,the United States and Afghanistan on Sunday finalized drafts of the strategic partnership agreement that pledges American support for Afghanistan for 10 years after the withdrawal of troops at the end of 2014. The US Ambassador,Ryan C Crocker,and Afghan national security adviser,Rangin Spanta,agreed on the wording of the draft,which will be sent to President Hamid Karzai and to the Afghan Parliament for review and approval before it is signed by the presidents of both countries,said officials. It covers the broad spectrum of the existing,broad-based,comprehensive partnership between the countries with the view towards sustaining that for at least another decade beyond the end of transition, said an Afghan official said. The document outlines the countries future relationship rather than specifying exact amounts of support or programs,but officials from both countries have said they hope that it will send a signal to insurgents and other destabilizing forces that the US is not going to abandon Afghanistan. Negotiations on the document started more than nine months ago but were delayed repeatedly over the sensitive issues of night raids by American troops and the American operation of detention facilities. Ultimately negotiators agreed to craft detailed separate agreements on those two issues and signed a memorandum of understanding on the transfer of detention operations to the Afghan government in March and in April signed a companion memorandum handing final authority on night raids to Afghan security forces,who are now carrying out all raids. 8 US soldiers die of drug overdosesWashington: Eight US Army soldiers have died of drug overdoses during deployments in Afghanistan in 2010 and 2011,according to a media report. The deaths were revealed in documents detailing investigations into 56 soldiers on suspicion of possessing,using or distributing opiates. AP
