Karzai attaches conditions on signing security pact
The president remains in a fix over attaching his name to the BSA.
Hamid Karzai. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE
ISLAMABAD:
“The Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) with the United States will only be inked when US troops stop raiding Afghan homes and help revive stalled peace talks with the Afghan Taliban.” This was said by Afghan President Hamid Karzai in a radio address on Thursday, reiterating his earlier position which he shared with the Loya Jirga on November 24.
The BSA, if signed, will allow the U.S. to extend their presence in the country for an additional 10 years and maintain a troop presence of up to 16,000 personnel after the Nato withdrawal in 2014.
Karzai adamantly stuck to his guns on air on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. “Whenever the Americans meet these two demands, I am ready to sign the agreement,” he said.
It came as a surprise to many among the 2,500 tribal elders, political leaders, lawmakers and rights activists – who attended the Loya Jirga – when Karzai decided to hold off on signing the security pact till the new Afghan president takes charge April next year.
The Loya Jirga approved the controversial BSA after debating its clauses over four days. Jirga Chairman Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, who also heads the Afghan National Liberation Front (ANLF), even threatened to go into self-imposed exile if Karzai refused to sign the document. Afghan media reports state Mujaddadi may have left for Turkey on Thursday.
The situation has been further inflamed after a US drone strike in the southern Afghan province of Helmand reportedly killed a two-year-old child and injured two women. The strike drew strong condemnation from Karzai, after which the American commander in Afghanistan, Gen Joseph F Dunford Jr, personally called the president to apologise.
“This attack shows American forces have no respect for the homes and lives of the Afghan people,” read a statement issued by the presidential palace. “No agreement will be signed with the Americans unless foreign forces stop brutalities and unilateral operations.”
The troubled president, unpopular amongst Afghans and nearing the end of his tenure, has found the courage to snub Washington twice in the last six months. He accused his foreign backer of conspiring against the government by allowing the Taliban to open an office in Qatar in an attempt to “install a parallel regime.”
Karzai remains in a fix, however, as there is strong support for making the BSA official. Many of the president’s close aides support the agreement as “it would ensure military and financial benefits.”
Karzai has been taking final swings at winning the sympathies of the Taliban before he steps down. He has demanded the Americans release Taliban prisoners held at the Guantanamo Bay and also convinced Pakistan to free nearly 50 Taliban detainees, including the former Taliban second-in-command Mullah Baradar. Though he was quick to take credit, none of those released have joined the peace process.
What troubles the president now is his legacy and how history would judge his tenure since the fall of the Taliban. He has doubts about attaching his name to an agreement that would ensure a continued long-term American presence in the country. To compensate, Karzai has been seeking a pledge from the US to expand the parameters of aggression, which would bind foreign forces to defend Afghanistan from external aggression.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2013.
“The Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) with the United States will only be inked when US troops stop raiding Afghan homes and help revive stalled peace talks with the Afghan Taliban.” This was said by Afghan President Hamid Karzai in a radio address on Thursday, reiterating his earlier position which he shared with the Loya Jirga on November 24.
The BSA, if signed, will allow the U.S. to extend their presence in the country for an additional 10 years and maintain a troop presence of up to 16,000 personnel after the Nato withdrawal in 2014.
Karzai adamantly stuck to his guns on air on Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. “Whenever the Americans meet these two demands, I am ready to sign the agreement,” he said.
It came as a surprise to many among the 2,500 tribal elders, political leaders, lawmakers and rights activists – who attended the Loya Jirga – when Karzai decided to hold off on signing the security pact till the new Afghan president takes charge April next year.
The Loya Jirga approved the controversial BSA after debating its clauses over four days. Jirga Chairman Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, who also heads the Afghan National Liberation Front (ANLF), even threatened to go into self-imposed exile if Karzai refused to sign the document. Afghan media reports state Mujaddadi may have left for Turkey on Thursday.
The situation has been further inflamed after a US drone strike in the southern Afghan province of Helmand reportedly killed a two-year-old child and injured two women. The strike drew strong condemnation from Karzai, after which the American commander in Afghanistan, Gen Joseph F Dunford Jr, personally called the president to apologise.
“This attack shows American forces have no respect for the homes and lives of the Afghan people,” read a statement issued by the presidential palace. “No agreement will be signed with the Americans unless foreign forces stop brutalities and unilateral operations.”
The troubled president, unpopular amongst Afghans and nearing the end of his tenure, has found the courage to snub Washington twice in the last six months. He accused his foreign backer of conspiring against the government by allowing the Taliban to open an office in Qatar in an attempt to “install a parallel regime.”
Karzai remains in a fix, however, as there is strong support for making the BSA official. Many of the president’s close aides support the agreement as “it would ensure military and financial benefits.”
Karzai has been taking final swings at winning the sympathies of the Taliban before he steps down. He has demanded the Americans release Taliban prisoners held at the Guantanamo Bay and also convinced Pakistan to free nearly 50 Taliban detainees, including the former Taliban second-in-command Mullah Baradar. Though he was quick to take credit, none of those released have joined the peace process.
What troubles the president now is his legacy and how history would judge his tenure since the fall of the Taliban. He has doubts about attaching his name to an agreement that would ensure a continued long-term American presence in the country. To compensate, Karzai has been seeking a pledge from the US to expand the parameters of aggression, which would bind foreign forces to defend Afghanistan from external aggression.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30th, 2013.