NATO SOFA Dependent on BSA

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) to be signed with the Afghan government is a separate agreement from the Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) that has not yet been signed by President Karzai. The BSA is a security agreement between the United States and Afghanistan. However, NATO has stated that NATO will not execute the Resolute Support mission if the BSA is not signed by Afghanistan. The signing of both agreements is a requirement for the stationing of 16,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan to conduct the Security Force Assistance mission. Read more on this topic in "NATO Head: Afghan Security Pact After Elections", Associated Press, February 20, 2014.