Turkey vows continued support for Afghanistan despite convoy attack

Turkey said it will continue to support Afghanistan despite a suicide attack killed one Turkish soldier in an attack in central Kabul on Thursday, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

A suicide bomber blew himself up against a Turkish diplomatic vehicle belonging to the NATO-led Resolute Support (RS) force in Kabul, and killed one Turkish service member with the NATO mission and an Afghan passer-by. Another Turkish soldier was wounded in the blast.

At a meeting of governors, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the attack would not diminish Ankara's resolve to making contributions to restoring stability and serenity in Afghanistan.

Responding to Taliban spokesperson's statement that the target was not Turks, the Turkish leader said his country condemned the perpetrators for the "vicious attack," and expected them to be penalized regardless of the motives.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said an investigation has been underway to find out whether the target was the Turkish soldiers or not.

"The NATO Senior Civilian Representative was not involved and is unharmed," the NATO's RS mission confirmed in a brief statement.

The Turkish parliament authorized the government in January to continue posting Turkish troops in war-torn Afghanistan for two more years under a new NATO mission.

Turkey also undertook the management of Kabul International Airport in the country's capital for a two-year term, which is used for both military and civilian purposes.

Some 900 Turkish personnel would be serving for training, advice and assistance mission in Afghanistan, Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz said in January. Endit