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We never had reports of Mullah Omar living luxuriously or making money in large quantities or anything like that.

Ahmed Rashid

What everyone underestimated was the acute unpopularity of the Taliban, even in the Pashtun areas.
AHMED RASHID

Acute Everyone People Population Support Underestimate Unpopularity
In my view, the Western model of influencing the development of third world countries is doomed to failure.
AHMED RASHID

Country Development Doomed Effort Failure Influencing Model Western World
The problem right now, which I’ve been pointing out very bluntly to American officials in Washington, is that the U.S. has no economic presence in Afghanistan.
AHMED RASHID

Country Economic Electricity Now Official Pointing Problem Right
Russia is now becoming increasingly nervous about a more permanent U.S. presence in Central Asia.
AHMED RASHID

Becoming Central Country Increasingly More Nervous Permanent Presence
They built that electricity powerhouse,” because nothing has been built so far.
AHMED RASHID

Built Country Electricity Far Nothing Powerhouse
The fact that there are no longer large units of Al Qaeda running around means you don’t need B-52s.
AHMED RASHID

Country Fact Large Longer Mean Running Unit
You need intelligence and special forces. And, most importantly, you need to resurrect Afghanistan from what is literally the graveyard of countries and transform it into a normal country, which the Afghans want.
AHMED RASHID

Countries Force Graveyard Importantly Intelligence Need Normal Resurrect Special
The West does not understand how to deal with states that no longer have any authority and are threatened by dissolution. Their efforts failed in Iraq as well as Afghanistan.
AHMED RASHID

Authority Country Deal Effort Longer State Threatened Understand
And China is not keen that the U.S. should be so close to its borders over a long period of time. Certainly, if the U.S. is going to be there for a long time, it’s going to exacerbate regional tensions.
AHMED RASHID

Border Certainly Country Going Long Period Tension Time
But all development programs of the United States and the European countries unfortunately exclude the private sector, which could make investments based on profitability.
AHMED RASHID

Countries Development Exclude Investment Private Program Sector Unfortunately
They are simply not capable of promoting the indigenous economy. Many billions of dollars flooded into Afghanistan, but without any significant effect.
AHMED RASHID

Billion Economy Effect Flood Indigenous Influencing Significant Simply
There will not be enough soldiers to ensure the security of the country. But will the US still be permitted to kill terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan with un-manned drones? That could worsen the situation in the neighboring states and they could view Afghanistan as a threat.
AHMED RASHID

Country Ensure Neighbour Security Situation Soldier Terrorist Threat
Our Pakistan elites are spoiled by permanent foreign aid and therefore find it difficult to change course. Pakistan needs someone who stands up and says: Fundamentalism is bad, capitalism is good.
AHMED RASHID

Aid Change Country Course Difficult Elite Energy Foreign Permanent Spoiled
The biggest mistake Barack Obama could have made is to change quite a few things in his Afghanistan policy. He increased the number of troops and at the same time set the US withdrawal date to 2014.
AHMED RASHID

Change Country Few Made Mistake People Policy Quite Thing
Now the United States has to ensure that Afghanistan does not immediately collapse after being left to itself in 2014.
AHMED RASHID

Being Collapse Country Ensure Immediate Left
There is no way the Americans are going to be able to carry out a full scale war against Iraq and at the same time maintain the same kind of pressure on the Al Qaeda network in countries as diverse as Indonesia, Philippines, and Pakistan, as well as in Europe.
AHMED RASHID

Able Against Carry Country Same Scale Time War Way

We never had reports of Mullah Omar living luxuriously or making money in large quantities or anything like that.

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We never had reports of Mullah Omar living luxuriously or making money in large quantities or anything like that.

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Popular Authors

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