Karzai slams US, Pakistan in farewell speech
His farewell speech came days ahead of the planned swearing in of a new president, Ashraf Ghani, after months of potentially violent crisis over a disputed election that ended in a power-sharing deal, yet to be tested, with rival Abdullah Abdullah.
Karzai blamed both the United States and Pakistan for the continuing war with the Taliban-led insurgency and warned the new government to be "be extra cautious in relations with the US and the West".
The conflict kills thousands of Afghans each year and has claimed the lives of more than 2,200 American and other international forces in Afghanistan.
"One of the reasons was that the Americans did not want peace because they had their own agenda and objectives," Karzai said.
He did not elaborate, but in the past has suggested continued violence has been an excuse for the United States to keep bases in the country.
He also accused Pakistani power players of trying to control Afghanistan's foreign policy. "Today, I tell you again that the war in Afghanistan is not our war, but imposed on us and we are the victims," Karzai said.
"No peace will arrive unless the US or Pakistan want it."
In recent years, Karzai has sharply denounced the United States for the deaths of Afghan civilians in air strikes and for holding suspected Afghan militants prisoner without trial.
The relationship deteriorated to near breaking point this year, when Karzai refused to sign a key security pact with the United States.
He said he had travelled to Pakistan at least 20 times seeking a negotiated end to the war, but his efforts were thwarted.
Neither the US nor the Pakistani embassies in Kabul had immediate comment on Karzai's speech.
Karzai has been in power since 2001 after being plucked from virtual obscurity by the United States following the overthrow of the Taliban's radical government for sheltering al Qaeda's terrorist leadership after the 9/11 attacks on the US.
The deterioration of his relationship with the West was seen by some as an effort to shape his legacy as an independent leader rather than a US puppet as maintained by the Taliban.
Karzai was barred by the constitution from running for a third term this year.
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Sorry, but Karzai could not manage anyone or anything. From the billions he got from U.S. & world with him, he could have turned the tide for the better for his people. But instead he chose to stay inside his Posh Palace blaming others for every thing in country. That's what happened when you don't hold the reins yourself but wait for advisors to dictate. Give me one development project he initiated himself. Even U.S. trained Afghan soldiers refused to face Taliban onslaught in recorded videos and ran back to U.S. Army for help, time and again. Yes, he was more interested in shooting rockets over the border on Pakistani posts.
@Had enough:
"We wish we could have looked after them better, but we di what we could with our limited resources."
Pakistan was paid $3B to look after the Afghan refugees. The establishment used all of it on military toys.
@Hassan kahattak: i don't agree with you on stolen money issue. If only one leader of a poor African country can hide $50b in Swiss banks. Indian businessmen can save $500b in Newziland, why can't Pak leaders stash $200b in foreign banks. Can you tell what happened to all the millions we got in foreign aids before asking Karzai? Well he is human too! Do you know only in the city Karachi $250m is taken in Varieties of extortions from Indistrial & export taxes to Property & sake taxes... DAILY?
@Afghan Maihan: Pakhtoon here. The reality is Pakistan has done a lot for Afghans and Afghanistan. Come to Peshawar and see how even now millions of Afghans are living and working here. No doubt Karzai, and his family, are a bunch of crooks who have stolen billions from Kabul Bank. If anything, you need to stop lying to yourself.
@Had enough: If any one has been manipulated are the Pakistanis by Mullahs and establishment.
@Hassan kahattak:
We have been honoured to house, feed, clothe, educate, protect the 3 - 4 million Afghans who came to Pakistan to seek refuge.
We wish we could have looked after them better, but we di what we could with our limited resources.
The hate spewed by Afghans against Pakistan is on contrast to the humanity shown to Afghans by Pakistanis in Pakistan.
At some point, Afghanis will realise they have been manipluated by Indian propaganda, and will ask, where did the $100bn US AID pumped in the country go?
Perhaps Hamid Karzai will have the answer!
@Oats: When Pakistanis say that Afghans should leave Pakistan, they should remember that all so called afghans under the age of 35 are born in Pakistan and they may not even have ever set their feet on Afghan soil, so by all means they are Pakistanis by virtue of being born in Pakistan. Children of Tibetan refugees in India are Indian citizens. It will be wrong to tell them to go back to Tibet, if India finds them politically undesirable.
As regads to Hamid Karzai, I admire him for running Afghanistan and bringing the government machinery back in the system. He had limitations that his country had no money and under the military presence of NATO. Yet he had the guts to snub both US and Pakistan when he did not feel comfortable with them. He made the Americans sweat by refusing to sign the security agreement. He is indeed a man of character and his people will remember and respect him more after he is out of power. We have seen the character of Pakistani leaders when US drones fired and Raymond Davis was freed. None can stand shoulder to shoulder with Karzai.
@Had enough,,,, Those who are thieves & steal millions can not speak the truth on the face of lone Imperial power of the world USA. Any other 2 number leader would have jumped at an opportunity of money making Bilateral Security Agreement with USA. Besides Pakistani main stream media have injected this virus of stealing millions & billions in the mentality of masses. This is all good for propaganda but far from truth. For example $200 billion in Swiss banks which is almost Pakistani GDP is blatant lies spread by media.
@Hassan Khattak:
Please can Karzai spend some of the millions he is alleged to have stashed around the world to take back the 3m Afghans running around Pakistan?
@Afghan Maihan: Lame, illogical and childish comments. No doubt Karzai was your president!
@Prasad:
"What Mr. Karzai said is absolutely right, as US never wants peace because if peace is there they cannot sell their weapons, if peace is there they cannot concur other countries oil blocks,mines and minerals. Hit out at US."
Don't parrot leftist communist propaganda. The US entered Afghanistan only because Osama bin Laden and his Alqueda terrorists committed the 9/11 barbaric attack on the US while comfortably living and plotting in Afghanistan.
The real culprit for Afghanistan's misery is Pakistan and its military establishment and their strategic depth nonsense.
The plain truth is a bitter pill for the Pakistanis to swallow ... !!
Nations that are struggling to survive are the ones that aid, abet and sponsor terrorism. Terrorists do far more damage to their masters than their opponents.
Pakistanis hate Hamid Karzai because the truth he knows contradicts the lies Pakistanis live under. Hateristanis keep on hating.
This guy allegedly made millions (if not billions) from the US. This attack on the US and Pakistan probably designed to distract from his poor governance and alleged corruption.
Something tells me he wont be going back to his laundry!
Unfortunately Uncle Sam was duped in Afghanistan by the Northern Alliance (and their Indian and Iranian handlers).
In the process, two long standing allies (US and Pakistan) found themselves destroying a solid relationship for some one elses benefit.
I get a kick out of reading comments from the brainwashed English medium Pakistanis, I shudder to think what kind of vitriol the Urdu medium types spew.
Aren't you guys supposed to be at D Chowk agitating for your Naya Pakistan?
So what did Karsai accomplish during his tenure? Blaming Pakistan and USA for his failure should be expected - sometimes a small amt of truth obscures the obvious - he was a lousy leader.
Still no issue of routine denial by the lady from FO from her SOP files kept ready for all types of accusations which are regularly hurled against Pakistan by neighbouring countries including US for many a decades.
@Waseem: The Afghans have always been good at blaming others for their own problems. Imagine if Afghan leaders stopped letting their country be a base for India and starting working for their own people instead? Then Afghans wouldn't need to be smuggling themselves all over the world to cry for asylum and refugee status.
Karzai presided over Afghanistan during most difficult times and the credit must go to him.
Karzai is humble sincere Afghan merely speaking the truth about terror and its sponsers. He thanked India, japan Germany for their sincere help to Afghanistan for a reason. Job well done karzai. Farewell. God bless And may your efforts help bring peace and prosperity to Pashtun on both sides of Durand line.
@Uzair aftab-qureishi, seems to me that Mr. Karzai hits where it hurts the most.
They survive on our assistance and yet use abusive language. Glad this evil will be no more.
Afghanistan was, is and will be the centre point of great game (British-Russian), the new great game (US -USSR) and the next great game ( US -China-CARs). It's geography, culture and anthropology are an explosive mix detrimental to any sort of future stability. Players will change, reasons may vary but instability is there to haunt forever.
Found a nice place in India? I hear Delhi is nice this time of year?
What Mr. Karzai said is absolutely right, as US never wants peace because if peace is there they cannot sell their weapons, if peace is there they cannot concur other countries oil blocks,mines and minerals. Hit out at US.
Bitter sore loser taking last swipe on orders of his Indian Masters. Will now live in exile in India. With all his and his brother's families in Bombay. There is no safety for him in Afghanistan. Has a few $ billions [US]...in different accounts.
I wonder where he will live now? South Delhi probably.
trying to hide your zero success and 100% failure of 13 years mr karzai ??
everyone knows how credible and honest this drug-dealer and war-lord karzai is .. dont come to Pak for asylum like you did just a few years back
A man who lived on Pakistani charity, a man who was accepted with both arms wide open by a poor country, closes his eyes and blames the same country for a plague that was of its own making!
Go and rest somewhere nice in the world with the money you skimmed off your poor country men. Jingoism will not help take care of your guilt.
Thanks Mr. Karzai for entertaining us for 13 years.
So now after enjoying the dinner he is saying he "happened to be in the neighborhood" and could not resist the temptation when saw the party & the activities? That he was hand-tied & gagged to the lead the nation, let his men run wild with corruption, profiteering, rapes & money laundering that runs in billions of dollars. And only now that he failed to make room for his third term, he is afraid for his life. I advice him to settle in India with his wealth & friends, maybe.
Bye bye Karzai. Something tells me you won't be missed