( CNN ) -- Efforts to reform the Afghan National Police force have been stymied by `` corruption and lack of political will , '' and police are wrongly being used to help fight the insurgency instead of crime , an independent research group said in a report . An Afghan policeman guards the scene of a suicide attack in Kabul on November 27 . `` The U.S. military ... still mainly sees the police as an auxiliary security force rather than an enforcer of the law , '' the International Crisis Group concluded in a report posted Thursday on its Web site . `` Too much emphasis is still placed on using the police to fight the insurgency rather than crime . `` The Afghan National Police ( ANP ) is ill-equipped for this role , and has been targeted by the Taliban , with 1,200 killed in 2007 and a similar toll expected in 2008 , '' the group added . The Taliban will be on the agenda during the first visit by Pakistan 's president to Afghanistan on Friday . The talks come amid ongoing warfare and tension along the Afghan-Pakistan border . Some of the Taliban militants conducting attacks in Afghanistan have been based in Pakistan 's North West Frontier Province and nearby tribal regions . `` The goal of the Afghan government and the international community should be a national police force able to uphold the rule of law , and thereby help tackle the root causes of alienation that drive the insurgency , '' the International Crisis Group said . The group described Afghanistan 's Interior Ministry as a `` hub of systemic corruption , '' and accuses the department of placing `` personal enrichment '' above the need for improved policing . Recent leadership changes at the Interior Ministry should be used to stress that abuses will no longer be tolerated . `` There has been little political will in Kabul or foreign capitals to tackle the power brokers who are preventing reform , '' said Samina Ahmed , the group 's South Asia project director . `` Organized crime and lawlessness lie at the heart of much popular disillusionment and instability . Better law enforcement , including a functioning judicial system , would help counter any appeal the insurgents may hold in Afghanistan , '' he added . The International Crisis Group covers more than 60 countries and territories , using field-based analysis and advocacy to deter and resolve deadly conflicts .
Afghan National Police is ill-equipped to fight insurgents , group says . There have been 1,200 insurgency-related police deaths in 2007 . Group alleges Interior Ministry puts personal gain above improved policing . Score: 6