When the Afghan president met with the Pakistani civil and military leadership last week, his main aim was to decipher Islamabad’s ‘real’ position on the Afghan endgame.
At the heart of discussions between the two neighbours was Hamid Karzai’s bold insistence that Pakistan come clean on what exactly it wants in Afghanistan.
During the talks described by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar as “hard and candid”, the Afghan president asked Pakistan to stop “playing a waiting game”, it was revealed.
A senior Pakistani official familiar with the discussions said that Karzai believed that Islamabad was playing a “wait and see game” on Afghanistan.
“He (Karzai) thinks we are not forthcoming on the peace talks with the Taliban. He believes we are waiting to see the Americans leave the region before we play our cards,” said the official referring to the Afghan president’s latest interaction with the Pakistani leadership.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, also said that Karzai suspected that the Pakistan’s security establishment would want to install a government of its ‘own choice’ in Kabul like it did during the ‘80s.
“If this is your ambition then forget about it. Let me tell you that neither would the Americans leave this region nor would you be able to manipulate the situation as you did in the past,” the official quoted Karzai as having said.
However, the official rejected the Afghan president’s assessment, saying Islamabad does not harbour any ‘hidden agenda’ for Afghanistan.
“Karzai’s remarks reflect his own failure and frustration to succeed and lead his country to peace and prosperity,” the official rebutted.
However, the foreign ministry spokesperson did not offer any comments on the discussions that took place between President Karzai and the Pakistani leadership.
Karzai visit – which began with expectations that it would bring the two neighbours closer to a joint strategy on the Afghan reconciliation process – is believed to have ended in a deadlock.
The contentious point appeared to be Kabul’s expectations that Islamabad must bring Afghan Taliban leaders, including Mullah Omar, to the negotiating table — with the presumption that the country’s military establishment still enjoys considerable clout over these insurgents.
But Pakistan was quick to reject the assessment in unusually harsh remarks by Foreign Minister Khar.
“Deliver Mullah Omar? If these are the expectations, then there are no reality checks … They are not only unrealistic, they are preposterous,” she said minutes after Karzai addressed a joint news conference with his Pakistani and Iranian counterparts.
‘No peace because of Pakistan’
An Afghan presidential adviser on Sunday accused Pakistan of playing a double game, promising to work for peace while using the Taliban and other groups as proxies to advance its interests in Afghanistan.
“They (Pakistan) say one thing and do another. There is no doubt that Taliban leadership and Mullah Omar are in Quetta. They recruit and fund people to create instability on this side,” Assadullah Wafa told Reuters.
“We have been deprived of peace in the country for the last 30 years and it is because of our neighbours.”
Afghan government efforts to bring the Taliban into peace talks are floundering and bold steps are needed to ensure that a council spearheading the reconciliation process can win the trust of insurgents, said Wafa.
(With additional input from Reuters)
Published in The Express Tribune, February 20th, 2012.
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There is hope for Afghans if Pakistan acts responsibly and ends its duplicity.
HAHAHA....Karzai should not be moaning about puppets.
Afghans have short memories. Starting from 1979, it was afghans themselves who invited and then fought Russians. That was their own doing, no one else's. Then the afghan warlords themselves destroyed each other, afghan people and the country.
Still, it is evident that the afghans simply refuse to reflect on their own actions and the resulting consequences. There really is no hope for afghans.
The Taliban are a myth and myth building is part and parcel of social engineering. Pakistan has done a tremendous disservice to its own people by distancing itself from its true South Asian identity and adopting a false Arab/Persian/Afghan/Mongol/Turk or whatever heritage they claim and pretending to be Pan Islamists.
Pakistan is a Punjabi south Asian nation with repressed minorities.The sooner everyone realizes this the better off they will be.
Afghans hate the Taliban and their patrons and this is a narrative that is shunned by Pakistan because they want to perpetuate false myths about their beloved Taliban.
At the end of the day, it's the Afghan civilians who are victims of this power struggle between the Afghanistan and Pakistan. I don't doubt Karzai's suspicion that the ISI and the miltary in Islamabad would "want to install a government of its ‘own choice’ in Kabul like it did during the ‘80s". Karzai has himself and his government to blame for the political failure. They can't provide for the ordinary Afghans, who have to live in fear and destitute. His corrupt government is the target of the Afghan Taliban who are also fighting the Western forces.
@Aryan: Better than Afghan administraters anyway.
@ AN
You should put your own nation under scrutiny before you jump to criticize Afghanistan. You inherited an administrative infrastructure from your colonial masters but unfortunately could not find able administrators to run your pathetic country.
@ Maria
The term lackey fits Pakistan not Afghanistan. Pakistan has been a lackey of the USA since 1947 and if you don't know that you should brush up on your history books.
@ Top: I second your sentiment.
Afghanistan has been around since 1747 and we have had empires stretching all the way to India. Every person with the surname Khan in the Indian sub continent got that name from us because we ruled over you and you idolize us.
The Taliban should take over the corrupt government of Pakistan and impose Sharia law and I will see how many of you pious and righteous Pakistanis stay in Pakistan under that type of regime.
Look who is talking! Looks like irony is lost on Afghan president since he doesnt realise how people view him.
@Anjaan: Next round of war? You guys never think of peace. Always waiting for war but then why blame you. Afghans have a history of wars. We Pakistanis don't want any war. If you are interested you could fight amongst yourself as you guys are always doing it. lol!
Like somebody needs to ask themselves where is Mullah Omar? I think he will be hiding in a place similar to Abottabad and then you'll say it's the failure of whole world because they couldn't find Mullah Omar. I think Secret Pakistan was an interesting documentary but Mr. Karzai has been saying this for a decade now.
@Organization of Pure Profit: No it should be like this but they will never admit this. “We have been deprived of peace in the country for the last 30 years and it is because of our own antics.”
it's not just this case, it's the case which happening from last 30-years, always they are doing this two face politics, they were also saying that we don't know about Usama, but recently he come out of Pakistan, and he was supporting by them and those who become on the map from last few years, must not compare them self with those which the world know them from last 5000 years,
This karzai is just useless and wants to put the blame on Pakistan for everything. By the way @anjaan the Afghans from the Northern Alliance and Shias hate Pakistan but not the southern part of the country. Come to Dubai and I will show you tons of Afghanis who love Pakistan and also Taliban and guess what, I can even get you some Afghani Sikhs who want the Taliban back. And why blame Pakistan for meddling? Pakistan doesn't Want another India in it's east. It's sick of the opium trade which is flourishing now and was stopped during the taleban. When America can travel thousands of miles for it's national interests, why doesn't Pakistan have the right to secure it's neighbor? Tell Karzai to stop joining forces with India so that Pakistan supports him. And guess what, the Afghans might hate Pakistan but they hate the corrupt incompetent Karzai as well. Atleast the Taliban could offer them peace!
@Anjaan: we too have generations of hate towards India.....
Mr. karzai instead of blaming Pakistan, secure your own border and negotiate with Taliban for peace keeping, u r just a puppet and angry for being sidelined by US in negotiation process, u cry and do nothing, Blame Americans for the instability in the region before American intervention region was quite peaceful
Until unless Pakistan's deep state stops supporting afghan taliban, peace can not come back o afghanistan. This is the only truth and everyone knows it.
They are smart, this time they will install a robot.
Every one knows that Pakistan is playing a double game, they received many assistance from the western countries to support Afghan Mujahideens during the war with soviet union, but they did not spend all those resource for the purpose it was specified, Pakistan believes that a developed and peaceful Afghanistan will not be in the benefits of their country which is wrong, Afghanistan has proved that it never gave hard time to any neighbor and neither it will give. Pakistan to understand that what they are doing now is not in their befits, they will be facing a lot of troubles in the near future, what they did after the exit of soviet union was completely a different time than what is currently going on, Afghans are no more in that ignorance. Pakistan will face trouble and is to go through the same stage as Afghanistan went...
@ Anjaan, Please know that it is the Imported Afghans that the Pakistanis do not trust. They have never worked for Afghanistan's peace, let aside the region. The conditions of Pakistan's internal security is directly related to the Afghanistan's unrest for the past thirty years. Afghanistan president can not come to Pakistan and give undiplomatic staements, after all he should not forget that he lives in an extension of one of our major province and "We" will always watch our interests there, concerning us .
Any country that thinks they can still control Afghanistan by supporting a group is not only wrong but they will sink before they realize it. Any country who invests on the Afghan people specially the young generation will not only get their just wishes but they will be respected by the Afghan people.
“We have been deprived of peace in the country for the last 30 years and it is because of our neighbours.” should be paraphrased to
“We have been deprived of peace in the country for the last 30 years and it is because of our rich invaders.”
Look who is calling PUPPETS are not acceptable ?????????????
Puppets dont like puppets.
this came from a president who rule 10% of the land in his country, why he don't talk to those in his country who are ruling 90% of his territory? Why he is looking for a official lettter to those 90% ruler from Hina Rubbani Khar to meet karzai?, I wonder if Pak is still rulling 90% of the Afghanistan?.
What Karzai did for his people? His own family members ruined villagers of southern Afghanistan and forced them to cultivate poppy and Karzai and his cabal completely destroyed financial back bone of Afghanistan by interfering in Kabul Bank. Neither Iran nor Pakistan is willing to support this man, now he has to call those with whom he signed strategic pacts.
Karzai protesting against puppet prez? oh the irony!
Afghanistan has no peace in its own borders among its own people and they simply want to blame all their problems on Pakistan- same old tired story that Afghanis tell each other and no one believes. Pakistan should just erect a fence on the border with Afghanistan because they will always be lackeys of India.