Afghan president 'has lost faith in US ability to defeat Taliban'

[babsbunny]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/09/afghanistan-taliban-us-hamid-karzai

Afghanistan's former head of intelligence says President Hamid Karzai is increasingly looking to Pakistan to end insurgency

Jon Boone in Kabul

President Hamid Karzai has lost faith in the US strategy in Afghanistan and is increasingly looking to Pakistan to end the insurgency, according to those close to Afghanistan's former head of intelligence services.

Amrullah Saleh, who resigned last weekend, believes the president lost confidence some time ago in the ability of Nato forces to defeat the Taliban.

As head of the National Directorate of Security, Saleh was highly regarded in western circles. He has said little about why he quit, other than that the Taliban attack on last week's peace jirga or assembly in Kabul was for him the "tipping point"; the interior minister, Hanif Atmar, also quit, and their resignations were accepted by Karzai.

[ThomThom]

1. If the people prefer the Taliban over our puppet Karzai then

they will not be defeated
it is always hard to get people on your side when you kill their family members and blow-up their stuff

[SharonAnn]

2. Americans have lost faith in the Afghans' ability to deafeat the Taliban.

Why should it be our job?

[johnaries]

3. I'm really tired of this Bush Neo-Con appointee who stole the

election, probably using techniques that BushCo taught him.

It's a good thing that I'm not President, because my patience is done. If I were President, I would invite Karzai over for dinner at the WH, and then have a "private meeting" in which I would point out that he was installed at the whim of a US President, and that "accidents happen", if you know what I mean.

That goes against everything I believe - and so it's a good thing I'm not the President.