Karzai to world: don’t fret, I’ll make it all better!

That war in Afghanistan was looking pretty bad for a while there! What with Transparency International dubbing Kabul as the world’s second-most corrupt government, and the fact that Afghanistan has pretty much become a narco-state, one could get the impression that Afghanistan has become somewhat of a lost cause.

But wait! President Hamid Karzai is back to take one more kick at the can.

This time, President Karzai means business. Those other times? trifles! nay, warm-up presidencies. From now on, Corrupt politicians will be tried, government officials who are too cozy with opium will be fired, and a government will be formed of such unity that not even gay marriage legislation could divide it.

Of course, everyone knows that President Karzai’s words are less a speech and more a fanciful story meant to titillate and capture the imagination of a certain President; one who’s Thanksgiving dinner is set to be fraught with anxiety.

Perhaps it’s time to start calling a spade a spade. We’re now eight years into the war and the only way for NATO to pull off a chaos-free inauguration is to shut down Kabul and declare a holiday. Populations in NATO countries are starting to froth at the mouth, demanding some kind of workable exit strategy beyond the fantasy type that is envisioned in Karzai’s recent speech. The thought of the war being politically sustainable for another three years is a stretch, let alone five or ten.

While the list goes on, there is one important standout among the reasons why it’s time NATO should start thinking exit strategy. The longer that foreign troops stay on the ground in Afghanistan, the more opportunity the Taliban has to pull in moderates who are simply pissed off at the Karzai government and NATO forces in their homeland. NATO is boosting the Taliban’s popularity by its very presence in Afghanistan, and swelling the Taliban’s ranks beyond its initially small band of hardcore ideologues.

For proof of this phenomenon, you need look no further than the Taliban’s response to Karzai’s call for their participation in a unity government. Their firm refusal was accompanied with the rationale that, “This is a government based on nothing because of the continuing presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan.” It is with this message that the Taliban continues to grow in popularity, make new territorial inroads, and essentially present NATO forces with an adversary that will take huge material and time resources to defeat.

Posted: November 19th, 2009 under commentary, foreign policy analysis.