White House must be firm with Afghanistan’s Karzai

President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan has won re-election by default, which raises many questions about the legitimacy of his government.

But with no options readily available, the United States and its allies in the war on global terrorism have to embrace Karzai.

It does not mean, however, that the Obama administration can’t make it clear to the Afghan leader that his credibility is being questioned.

Indeed, President Obama is looking for a strong, effective partner in the fight to keep the Taliban from making a comeback in Afghanistan. It was the Taliban regime that gave Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida terrorist organization safe haven. Bin Laden operated training camps that produced most of the terrorists in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on America’s mainland. More than 3,000 people died.

A U.S.-led invasion resulted in the ouster of the Islamic extremist government. However, bin Laden and members of his inner circle who were holed up in caves escaped into Pakistan after the Bush administration redeployed American troops to Iraq.

Thus today, bin Laden continues to direct terrorist activities from the remote tribal areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Al-Qaida and the Taliban have joined forces in the effort to chase the U.S, and its allies out of Afghanistan and replace the Karzai government with an Islamic theocracy.

Hence, it is important for Karzai to restore the public’s faith and trust in his government. As a first step, he should end the widespread corruption by getting rid of officials who are enriching themselves with the money being poured into Kabul by the United States and European nations.

Weary Americans

Karzai must also understand that the American people have grown weary of the rising death toll among U.S. troops and the huge and still growing price tag for the eight-year military excursion. It is why President Obama is taking his time deciding whether to bow to pressure from Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, for thousands more soldiers within a year’s time.

Obama has said that before such an important decision is made, the mission must be clearly defined and realistic goals established.

Is the role of the U.S. and its allies only to keep the Taliban at bay? Is it to prop up the democratically elected government in Kabul and to help rebuild the war-torn nation? Is it to create a buffer against al-Qaida?

The president is absolutely right in seeking the counsel of an array of people, including those inside and outside the military.

The results of knee-jerk military operations can clearly be seen in Iraq. After more than $600 billion and 4,354 American deaths, the situation is still not stable. To be sure, the invasion resulted in the ouster of Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein, but the daily lives of the people are in many instances just as difficult.

Afghanistan’s president, Karzai, had faced a runoff election on Nov. 9 against his chief opponent in the August election, Abdullah Abdullah.

On Sunday, Abdullah, the former foreign minister, announced that he would not be participating in the runoff because Karzai had refused his demands that some members of the Independent Election Commission be replaced because he believes they are tied to the president. In addition, Abdullah wanted measures in place to prevent the type of massive fraud that was evident in the August election.

A review of the votes resulted in Karzai losing one-third of his total, which meant that he failed to hit the 50 percent mark. Thus, the runoff. But now, he is returning to office by virtue of not having an opponent.

Karzai would be foolish to look upon his re-election as anything more than a twist of political fate. He should commit to doing whatever is necessary to win the trust of the Afghan people and to persuade the American public that his military and police will soon be in a position to take the leadership role in the war against the Taliban and al-Qaida.