The newly established Afghanistan Council for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation, a NGO which serves as an agent of change and as a forum for new ideas was supported by the Afghanistan authorities as well as by H. E. Hikmet Çetin, NATO’s Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan; H. E. Zalmay Khalilzad, Special Presidential Envoy And US Ambassador to Afghanistan; and H. E. Krasimir Tulechki, Ambassador of Bulgaria to Afghanistan.

Representatives of the Afghanistan Council for Euro–Atlantic Cooperation took part in a seminar for activists of the newly established Afghanistan Council. This seminar was held in Sofia and Plovdiv during the period 7-11 June 2004.

The Afghan group included Mr. Babakhan Aslami, President of the Afghanistan Council for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation, Mrs. Ogai Amail, Mr. Mir Aqa Haqjoo, Mr. Mohammad Naim Haqmal, and Mr. Jon Agha Jasim. The Afghan activists had meetings and discussions with H. E. Peter Stoyanov, Former President of Bulgaria; H. E. Ivan Kostov, MP and Former Prime Minister of Bulgaria; H. E. Gergana Grancharova, Deputy Foreign Minister; H. E. Nikolay Milkov, Deputy Foreign Minister; Dr. Zhivko Georgiev, Manfred Wörner Foundation – Bulgaria; Col. Dr. Valeri Rachev, Military Acadeçmy G. S. Sava Rakovski; Amb. Konstantin Dimitrov, Institute for Euro-Atlantic Security; Yuliana Metodieva, Bulgarian Helsinki Comitee; Kalina Kostadinova, President of the Bulgarian Euro-Atlantic Youth Club; Kemal Eyup, MP.

A wide variety of topics were discussed both at these meetings and at a special Atlantic Policy Meeting organized by the Manfred Wörner Foundation. Topics of discussion were the evolution of NATO and its global mission; partnerships with the media; potential and challenges facing the emerging civil society of Afghanistan; democracy in Muslim countries; democratic transformation of Afghanistan and its contribution to regional stability, and also other future activities.

Mr. Aslami and his colleagues took part in the public presentation of the film documentary Mission Afghanistan, produced by the BTV Television with the support of the Atlantic Club during the visit of Dr. Lyubomir Ivanov to Afghanistan in April 2004. The Afghan group had also the opportunity to visit Plovdiv city where a press conference was held by the local Atlantic Club Complex.