Afghan President Hamid Karzai, under fire for anti-Western remarks, distanced himself from his foreign backers in a speech on Sunday, telling tribal elders Afghans need to see their leaders are not “puppets.”
Speaking in front of some 1,500 elders at a shura, or traditional council meeting, in the southern city of Kandahar, Karzai said he would block an upcoming major NATO offensive in the area if it did not have the support of local people.
The commander of US and NATO forces, General Stanley McChrystal, who flew down to Kandahar with Karzai, sat on the stage behind the Afghan president but did not speak.
PHOTO: EPA
“Afghanistan will be fixed when its people trust their president is independent ... when the people trust the government is independent and not a puppet,” Karzai said, adding that government officials should not let “foreigners” meddle in their work.
“The other day, I told Mr [US President Barack] Obama: ‘I can’t fix this nation through war,’” he said. “It has been eight years that this situation is going on, we want peace and security ... I’m engaged with all my force to bring peace in this country.”
Obama met Karzai in Kabul last week during a brief nighttime visit to Afghanistan. The visit was overshadowed days later when Karzai delivered a verbal attack on the West.
The White House demanded an explanation after Karzai accused foreigners of perpetrating election fraud, bribing officials and trying to weaken him and his government.
Once the darling of the West, Karzai has fallen out with Western leaders in recent years, especially after a fraud-marred presidential election in August that saw him return to power.
The strained relations could complicate a counter-insurgency military strategy, which calls for NATO troops to emphasize their support for Karzai’s government more than ever.
NATO forces are planning on launching the biggest operation of the eight-year-old war in and around Kandahar, southern Afghanistan’s biggest city, birthplace of the Taliban and hometown of Karzai and his powerful family.
Washington calls the offensive — due to begin in earnest when thousands of additional US troops arrive at the end of next month or early June — the main focus of its “surge” strategy to turn the momentum against the insurgency this year.
In his speech, the Afghan president promised to consult tribes before the operation and block it if they do not support it.
“These days the foreigners speak of an operation in Kandahar. I know you are worried. Are you worried?” Karzai asked.
“Yes, we are!” some shouted back.
“Well, if you are worried, then there won’t be an operation, if you are not happy,” Karzai said.
US Major-General William Mayville, in charge of operations for NATO troops, played down those comments, saying the president was “on board” for the operation and was only trying to win support for it from the community.
“It doesn’t really matter what we think. It matters what the 1,300 or so folks in that room think. [Karzai] acknowledged he’s the commander-in-chief, that’s helpful,” Mayville said.
“You’ve got to have the community really wanting in, otherwise things are stalled. [Karzai’s] convinced, he’s on board. We would not have had this shura if he wasn’t convinced this is the right stuff,” Mayville told reporters.
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