NATO Secretary General Mr George Robertson described Afghanistan as a ‘black hole’ today and said last month's attacks on the US had not derailed plans to expand NATO beyond the old Iron Curtain.
"Afghanistan is a safe haven for terrorists precisely because it has no viable state structure. It is a black hole," Mr Robertson said in his opening remarks to a summit of 10 former communist countries seeking to join the alliance.
That is why NATO is engaged in southeast Europe, to prevent such black holes from emerging on our doorstep, he said.
NATO-led forces are operating in Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia, helping to shore up often-fragile peace.
He said NATO and the broad international coalition being formed following the terrorist attacks had to do more to co-operate if it was to win its war on terrorism.
Last month's attacks had neither derailed the enlargement process nor slammed NATO's door shut, according to Mr Robertson.
NATO leaders are due to decide on the alliance's next expansion at a summit in Prague late next year. Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999.