US-Nato force gets new chief

– General Scott Miller took command of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan yesterday, as worsening violence erodes hopes for peace in the wartorn country.

Miller, who has commanded special operations units in Afghanistan since 2013, succeeds General John Nicholson, who is rotating out of the post after more than two years.

The handover comes at a sensitive time in the 17-year war that has seen little progress by Afghan or US forces against the Taliban, Afghanistan’s largest militant group.

Afghan and international players have been ratcheting up efforts to hold peace talks with the Taliban, which was toppled from power by US-led forces in 2001.

An unprecedented ceasefire in June followed by talks between US officials and Taliban representatives in Qatar in July fuelled hopes for negotiations to end the war. But a recent spate of attacks by Taliban and the Islamic State group that left hundreds of security forces and civilians dead has almost extinguished that optimism.

“This is a tough fight,” Miller said during a change of command ceremony in Kabul attended by top Afghan officials and foreign diplomats. “We cannot afford to be complacent. We must be aware of bias and easy conclusions. They don’t exist here.” –