A Poisoned Relationship
Published in Frankfurter Allgemeine
(Germany) on 9 July 2013
by Günther Nonnenmacher (link to
original)
The relationship between the Afghan President Karzai and the Obama administration is fundamentally damaged. The Pashtun leader has the — not incorrect — impression that Washington was against his re-election in 2009. The Americans, on the other hand, accuse Karzai of bestowing political favors that run counter to their own policy. They are also correct.
The latest blow to American-Afghan relations was the opening of the Taliban office in Qatar. So many mistakes and misunderstandings have piled up around this new office that the promised talks about it have yet to happen. Also unresolved is an even older question regarding a status of forces agreement for the continuing American presence after the withdrawal of troops, scheduled for the end of 2014.
Washington insists on full immunity for its soldiers; Karzai sees this as trespassing on Afghan sovereignty. Now Obama has threatened a complete withdrawal of troops if an agreement cannot be reached soon, which would not be in the interests of either side. But both sides’ concerns for prestige could give the threat a life of its own — just as it was in the case of Iraq.
The latest blow to American-Afghan relations was the opening of the Taliban office in Qatar. So many mistakes and misunderstandings have piled up around this new office that the promised talks about it have yet to happen. Also unresolved is an even older question regarding a status of forces agreement for the continuing American presence after the withdrawal of troops, scheduled for the end of 2014.
Washington insists on full immunity for its soldiers; Karzai sees this as trespassing on Afghan sovereignty. Now Obama has threatened a complete withdrawal of troops if an agreement cannot be reached soon, which would not be in the interests of either side. But both sides’ concerns for prestige could give the threat a life of its own — just as it was in the case of Iraq.