* Parliament yet to meet after September election
* NATO chief calls for "timely" opening of the assembly
By David Brunnstrom
BRUSSELS, Jan 24 (Reuters) - NATO said on Monday it aimed to start transferring responsibility for security in Afghanistan to Afghan forces by March, but stressed the need for an Afghan parliament to be in place for the process to succeed.
More than four months since a general election marred by widespread fraud, Afghanistan's parliament has yet to convene and President Hamid Karzai has kept silent about a deal to inaugurate the assembly on Wednesday and end the political crisis. [ID:nSGE70M00B]
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance aimed to start the process of handing over security responsibility to Afghan forces in February, or at the latest in March, and he expected Afghan authorities to meet the necessary conditions.
"It is a prerequisite for a successful transition that we have a stable political environment," he told reporters in Brussels. "That is why I have stressed the need for a timely opening of parliament."
On Saturday Karzai abandoned a decision to delay the opening of the assembly by a month, bowing to international and domestic pressure after lawmakers threatened to convene with or without him on the scheduled date, Jan. 23. [ID:nSGE70L026]
His silence on the issue on Sunday added to worries that he would cling to a special election court they consider illegal.
The crisis began when Karzai last week backed a request from the election tribunal, which he had set up, to allow another month to look into fraud claims arising from the Sept. 18 vote.
The standoff has thrown the government into chaos at a time when insurgent violence is at its worst since the overthrow of the Taliban government by U.S.-backed forces in 2001. <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ For more on Afghanistan double click on [ID:nAFPAK] ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
NATO agreed with Karzai at a summit in November to begin transferring security responsibility from NATO to Afghan forces this year with the aim of completing the process by the end of 2014.
Rasmussen stressed the transition would depend on security conditions.
The process is aimed at allowing the gradual withdrawal of the 150,000 NATO troops from Afghanistan, where they have been struggling to contain a widening Taliban insurgency.
NATO initially planned to start handing over to Afghan forces at the end of last year, but this aim was hampered by slow progress in building up those forces and increasing insurgent violence. (Editing by Rex Merrifield and Andrew Dobbie)
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