Now President Barack Obama is ready to cut Karzai adrift? And Mr. Hamid Karzai, the Afghan President, is former President Bush‘s puppet in Kabul? Even more shocking: Mr. Obama is considering backing a “dream ticket” to wrestle power from Mr. Karzai.
This is probably the first time Washington has openly acknowledged supporting a foreign leader who is ineffective on the domestic front but guarantees US foreign policy and security interests.
From day one, Mr. Karzai was a puppet president with no real power or control outside the heavily fortified Afghan capital, Kabul. Outside Kabul, violence raged. In the last few months, the doctrinaire Islamist Taliban insurgency has been gaining momentum.
Media reports have consistently suggested that Mr. Karzai presided over a weak and corrupt administration with direct links to the lucrative opium industry. This infamous industry also finances the Taliban insurgency.
But Mr. Karzai was “democratically elected”, wasn’t he? Under him Afghanistan became a beacon of democracy that all repressed countries should emulate. With Mr. Karzai’s permission, Afghanistan is currently the US’ biggest front against global terrorism.
The question Washington should now answer is: what went wrong with Mr. Karzai, and when?
Mr. Karzai’s sins go beyond his ineffectual and corrupt leadership. In recent years, he has made one unforgivable mistake after another. He has been transforming himself into a puppet with brains of its own, willing to speak its mind and challenge its master.
Mr. Karzai even tried to portray the true reality of the war in Afghanistan as he sees it. On a recent visit to the US he told CNN that terrorism in Afghanistan was out of control and that the search for al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, was stalled.
Then he described Iran as a “positive player“ in the politics of the region, a “helper” and “solution“, even.
Once Mr. Karzai demanded greater control over NATO operations in Afghanistan. Often and too loudly, he protested the mounting civilian casualties.
But Mr. Karzai’s biggest insult to his master was when he suggested reaching out to the Taliban. He even offered direct talks with Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar and radical warlord, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. He offered them positions in his government if they gave up violence.
Both men are wanted by Washington.
Mr. Karzai’s arguments echoe Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith, Britain’s commander in Afghanistan who last October said the war in Afghanistan cannot be won. As the NPR asserted in November, engaging the Taliban is a necessary evil if real and lasting peace is to be achieved in Afghanistan,
While inevitable, Mr. Karzai’s ouster borders on the personal and vindictive. The Afghan President has been the puppet of the wrong master, former US President, George Bush. President Obama is on a “mission to undo eight years of the Bush administration”.
Mr. Karzai is being crucified for Mr. Bush’s sins.
Further, Mr. Karzai’s recent bravado flies directly in the face of a new President whose tenure might just be defined by the war in Afghanistan. Determined to win the war at any cost, Mr. Obama has proposed a troop surge, which Mr. Karzai opposes.
Mr. Obama’s determination to pursue US foreign policy and national security interests at any cost cannot be overemphasized. Mr. Karzai is already history. But a new US-backed Afghan leader will still be seen as a foreign pawn. The individual will discredit Kabul and give the Taliban the room to maneuver.
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