American Concerns Over Karzai Deepen - State Dep't Information About Ouster of Afghan Prosecutor as Tensions Grow Over Anticorruption Effort
From The Wall Street Journal:
Renewed tension with Afghan President Hamid Karzai—this time over the ouster of a graft-fighting prosecutor—is adding to doubts within the Obama administration and the U.S. military about their ability to show progress fighting corruption and improving governance, ahead of a White House review of war strategy in December.
The abrupt dismissal last week of Fazel Ahmed Faqiryar, Afghanistan's deputy attorney general, caught U.S. officials off guard, and the State Department said it was seeking information from the Afghan government about his status.
With many U.S. policy makers on vacation and Congress in recess, officials acknowledged it would take time for Washington to formulate a fuller response. They have limited room to maneuver because Washington is wary of igniting a full-blown confrontation with Mr. Karzai, whom some see as an increasingly shaky part of the administration's war strategy.
Rising U.S. casualties, including the deaths of seven U.S. troops in weekend attacks in Afghanistan's southern and eastern regions, have fueled opposition to the war at home ahead of November congressional elections, particularly within President Barack Obama's Democratic Party.
U.S. officials said the flare-up over Mr. Faqiryar shows the difficulty of managing relations with Mr. Karzai, who they say has become increasingly confrontational, in public and private, especially when he feels pressure to combat corruption in his administration.
Some U.S. military officials point to what they see as a worrying trend: Their ability to expand security isn't being matched in many places by progress on governance, undercutting a counterinsurgency strategy that hinges on boosting Kabul's legitimacy among the Afghan people.
Mr. Karzai has laid blame for much of the corruption in Afghanistan on the U.S. and its allies, which he says have been pouring billions of aid into the country with little oversight.
Renewed tension with Afghan President Hamid Karzai—this time over the ouster of a graft-fighting prosecutor—is adding to doubts within the Obama administration and the U.S. military about their ability to show progress fighting corruption and improving governance, ahead of a White House review of war strategy in December.
The abrupt dismissal last week of Fazel Ahmed Faqiryar, Afghanistan's deputy attorney general, caught U.S. officials off guard, and the State Department said it was seeking information from the Afghan government about his status.
With many U.S. policy makers on vacation and Congress in recess, officials acknowledged it would take time for Washington to formulate a fuller response. They have limited room to maneuver because Washington is wary of igniting a full-blown confrontation with Mr. Karzai, whom some see as an increasingly shaky part of the administration's war strategy.
Rising U.S. casualties, including the deaths of seven U.S. troops in weekend attacks in Afghanistan's southern and eastern regions, have fueled opposition to the war at home ahead of November congressional elections, particularly within President Barack Obama's Democratic Party.
U.S. officials said the flare-up over Mr. Faqiryar shows the difficulty of managing relations with Mr. Karzai, who they say has become increasingly confrontational, in public and private, especially when he feels pressure to combat corruption in his administration.
Some U.S. military officials point to what they see as a worrying trend: Their ability to expand security isn't being matched in many places by progress on governance, undercutting a counterinsurgency strategy that hinges on boosting Kabul's legitimacy among the Afghan people.
Mr. Karzai has laid blame for much of the corruption in Afghanistan on the U.S. and its allies, which he says have been pouring billions of aid into the country with little oversight.
posted by Sid Cottingham | 6:05 AM
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