For Afghans, a life under the American jackboot

[Barrett808]

For Afghans, a life under the American jackboot
Gulf News
06/03/2005
By Neena Gopal

Afghan President Hamid Karzai returned from Washington with a "strategic partnership" with the United States neatly sewn up. Karzai no longer has to worry that the United States will be in Afghanistan only for the short-term as other bush fires in the region threaten to distract its attention.

It has committed successive US governments to stay on and protect their hard won toehold in a country that abuts arch-foe Iran, keeps a watchful eye on its porous Eastern border and opens up future access to oil and gas rich Central Asia.

But what has Karzai really gained? He may not have been initially responsible for letting the US in. That, Taliban chief Mullah Omar did all by himself, inviting retribution by refusing to parlay Osama Bin Laden for peace. But Karzai was hand-picked to run his country by the US, when his fellow Pashtun, the legendary one-legged commander Abdul Haq died in combat ahead of that gritty battle when the US finally took Kabul behind a rag-tag anti-Taliban force.

He is seen as the man who is committed to safeguarding US interests. Even Pashtun interests. But with parliamentary elections to the Wolesi Jirga three months away, and a presidential election which raised more questions than answers tucked under his belt, will he be seen as putting Afghanistan's interests first?

(more)

http://e-ariana.com/ariana/eariana.nsf/63e0bdfbc90b9ca987256be00056a108/989ad665eba6e479872570150037f8d8?OpenDocument

[pnorman]

1. That's an interesting website,

with a lot of good information in it (http://www.e-ariana.com/) I haven't seen any indication yet of it being an overt propaganda mill. I'll bookmark it.

pnorman