UN Calls On NATO Summit Members To Protect Women's Rights

There are fears that improvements made in the education and security of Afghan women during the past decade could be lost.

The United Nations has called on participants in next week's NATO summit to take steps to protect the rights of women in Afghanistan before foreign troops pull out of the country in 2014.

Jan Kubis, the UN's special envoy to Afghanistan, said improvements made in the education and security of Afghan women during the past decade could be lost as the government in Kabul attempts to reconcile with the Taliban and NATO troops prepare to withdraw.

Kubis's remarks were part of a joint statement issued by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, UN Women, and the UN Population Fund.

Officials attending the NATO summit in the U.S. city of Chicago on May 20-21 are due to consider funding for Afghan security forces and support for human rights.

With reporting by AFP