Bonn, Germany (CNN) -- Ten years ago, Afghan leaders met outside Bonn, Germany, to lay out a road map to establish and sustain Afghanistan's government after the fall of the Taliban. On Monday, the nation's president for the last seven years, Hamid Karzai, will once again preside over a conference in the west German city to chart his nation's future. Yet this time, as opposed to just U.N. representatives facilitating the 2001 conference for a group of Afghan exiles and leaders, members of 85 delegations from various countries and 15 international organizations will join Afghans in the discussions. Their goal is to take stock of accomplishments and assess continued challenges in Afghanistan over the past decade, as well as to plot a partnership with the Kabul government amid plans to withdraw all foreign combat troops from the country by 2014.
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Diplomats and NGO leaders meet this week in Germany to talk about Afghanistan
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The conference is being led by Afghan President Hamid Karzai
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Afghanistan is facing many economic, security and political challenges
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The absence of Pakistan from the conference looms large
@placeholder is viewed as a critical player in the region, because of its perceived relationships with the Taliban and other insurgency groups -- some of whom are based within Pakistani borders, from where they launch attacks on Afghan and foreign troops.