KABUL : Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai has accused the United Statesand Pakistan of using the Afghanistan War to further their own nationalinterests, adding that Afghanistan is in “terrible shape” 16 years afterthe collapse of the Taliban.
He also warned that Afghans who had embraced the U.S. as a friend andliberator now see it as “hurting us, not helping us.” “That has to change,”Karzai said in an interview.
In an interview at his Kabul home, where he wore his signature ankle-lengthgreen striped coat and karakul cap, Karzai echoed complaints fromAfghanistan’s current government that accused neighboring Pakistan ofharboring Taliban militants and urged the U.S. to impose sanctions onPakistani military and intelligence officials.
Citing U.S. President Donald Trump’s New Year’s Day tweet that accusedPakistan of “lies and deceit,” Karzai said, “We hope the U.S. will now actin Pakistan.”
But he added that “doesn’t mean that the Pakistan people should be hurt orthat war should be launched in Pakistan.”
“In other words, I want the U.S. to impose sanctions on the Pakistanmilitary and the intelligence, not on the Pakistani people,” Karzai said.
The interview occurred a day after U.S. lawmakers questioned the directionof America’s longest war. At a hearing Tuesday, the Senate ForeignRelations Committee noted that Washington is spending about $45 billion ayear in Afghanistan, with most of the money going to security, the bulk ofwhich finances U.S. troops and accompanying logistical support. Only $780million goes toward economic aid. – Agencies