Allied leader says Afghan war effort now on track

TALLINN, Estonia - NATO's top official said Friday the 28-nation alliance is on track with its new strategy for winding down the war in Afghanistan next year, despite security setbacks and a continuing shortage of foreign trainers for the fledgling Afghan police and army.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen offered a mostly upbeat assessment to a gathering of allied foreign ministers, including US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who are assessing what will be required to meet the goal - first laid out by President Barack Obama last December - of transitioning to Afghan control next summer.

Fogh Rasmussen asserted that the Afghan government, which has been hampered by a Taliban insurgency, political corruption, a dysfunctional economy and a dependence on foreign assistance, is starting to take more responsibility for the country's affairs.