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vThis region harbors enormous potential. Pakistan could become the hub for the energy that is transported from Central Asia to South Asia. That could change the whole region.

Ahmed Rashid

This year we watched the collapse of Mali, a consequence of the Libyan civil war. The south of Libya and Mali, and Niger too, are well on the way to becoming a no-man’s land. After 9/11,
AHMED RASHID

After Collapse Consequences Land Mall Man No South War Watched
Some Pakistanis fought for the Taliban. Pakistani extremist groups provided infrastructural support to Al Qaeda. There was a coming and going of Al Qaeda militants and leaders between Afghanistan and Pakistan for several years.
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Cities Country Extremist Group Provided Support Year
The Pashtuns are angry at the Americans because, one, they’re still being bombed, and two, they perceive that the Americans are backing the Tajik faction, which controls the army and security forces in Kabul.
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Angry Army Backing Control Country Perceive Security Year
But all development programs of the United States and the European countries unfortunately exclude the private sector, which could make investments based on profitability.
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Countries Development Exclude Investment Private Program Sector Unfortunately
The United States only knows one form of intervention and that is the military one. Everything depends on drawn weapons. We should, however, develop a wider scope of action. And we should learn to be patient.
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Action Know Military One Patient United States
They were communists and had the same vision for Afghanistan that Stalin and Lenin had for the Soviet Union: Progress is communism plus electrification. And today? Today Kabul gets its electrical power from Uzbekistan, Herat from Iran and Jalalabad from Pakistan.
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Communist Country Electrical Power Progress Union Vision
All that has really happened is that Al Qaeda has escaped from Afghanistan come into Pakistan, got in touch with their contacts and friends.
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Contact Country Escape Friend Happen Really Touch
What everyone underestimated was the acute unpopularity of the Taliban, even in the Pashtun areas.
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Acute Everyone People Population Support Underestimate Unpopularity
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.
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Country Economic Electricity Now Official Pointing Problem Right
The idea of a permanent U.S. military presence in Afghanistan, as opposed to an economic presence, is going to create a new wave of hostility toward the United States.
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Country Economic Idea Military Opposed Permanent Presence United States
It would have been better if the United Nations had sent a team to Mali right away to mediate between the government and the rebels. But where is the political initiative?
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Army Better Country Fighting Government Mail Meditate Team
In my view, the Western model of influencing the development of third world countries is doomed to failure.
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Country Development Doomed Effort Failure Influencing Model Western World
The Soviets held to the tradition of colonialism. They raped the country and killed many people. But they also built dams, electrical power plants, streets, and technical schools.
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Colonialism Country Kill People Rape School Tradition
The fact that there are no longer large units of Al Qaeda running around means you don’t need B-52s.
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Country Fact Large Longer Mean Running Unit
Russia is now becoming increasingly nervous about a more permanent U.S. presence in Central Asia.
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Becoming Central Country Increasingly More Nervous Permanent Presence
George W. Bush and Tony Blair made the promise that they would not tolerate failed states because they could become a haven for terrorists. And today? The number increases.
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Failed Increase Made Number Promise State Terrorist Tolerate
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.
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Countries Force Graveyard Importantly Intelligence Need Normal Resurrect Special
They are simply not capable of promoting the indigenous economy. Many billions of dollars flooded into Afghanistan, but without any significant effect.
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Billion Economy Effect Flood Indigenous Influencing Significant Simply
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.
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Authority Country Deal Effort Longer State Threatened Understand
You have a lot of suspicion from the neighbors of Afghanistan about U.S. intentions. Iran is already, to some extent, trying to undermine the U.S. in Afghanistan.
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Already Country Intention Long Neighbour Suspicion
We should remember that the Pashtuns are the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan.
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Country Ethnic Group Largest Remember Support
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.
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Change Country Few Made Mistake People Policy Quite Thing
The Pashtuns feel discriminated against by the Americans because they supported the Taliban and the war is still going on in their region with continued U.S. bombing.
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Country Discriminated Key Political Supported War
In these extremist groups, which then provided them with safe houses, cars, and not just in the border areas but also in the cities. Rooting out Al Qaeda in Pakistan now is where the main battle is being fought.
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Area Battle Border Car Extremist Fought Group House Provided Safe
Of course, many of them did support the Taliban. But you cannot equate all Pashtuns with the Taliban.
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All Country Course Support
The key to breaking the Taliban taboo against women and the cultural brainwashing that the Taliban imposed upon many Afghans is to get women back into the workforce.
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Against Breaking Country Impose Keys Workforce
The Afghans can’t point and say, “Oh, the Americans built that road. They built that telecommunications facility.
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Built Country Facility Point Road Say Telecommunication

vThis region harbors enormous potential. Pakistan could become the hub for the energy that is transported from Central Asia to South Asia. That could change the whole region.

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vThis region harbors enormous potential. Pakistan could become the hub for the energy that is transported from Central Asia to South Asia. That could change the whole region.

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Popular Authors

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