German non-governmental organizations operating in Afghanistan refused the government’s proposal for closer cooperation with the German army in exchange for the release of aid amounting to more than 10 million euros (USD12.9 million).
The proposal is based on Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Dirk Niebel’s “networked security” policy in Afghanistan, which combines military security with development aid and reconstruction efforts, Spiegel Online reports.
Relief organizations such as the German arm of the international Catholic aid organization Caritas and Venro, an association of German NGOs, were among those against the proposed collaboration.
In response to the minister’s proposal, Venro member organizations said they are “not an implementation organization for the government.”
