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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.

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
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 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
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
That window, which has stayed open for nearly five years, with amazing good will from the Afghans, is threatening to close unless the world wakes up and deals with the crisis.
AHMED RASHID

Amazing Close Country Crisis Deal Good Nearly Stayed Threatening Unless Window World Year
If Afghan soldiers continue to kill American soldiers as is happening these days, it can hardly be assumed that they will stay in Afghanistan in the long term. And what role are they to play?
AHMED RASHID

Assumed Continue Country Happening Long Soldier
Of course, many of them did support the Taliban. But you cannot equate all Pashtuns with the Taliban.
AHMED RASHID

All Country Course Support
There’s a sense of desperation in Afghanistan because of the lack of funding and the fact that the U.S. only has a one-track military strategy. It doesn’t have an economic and political game plan.
AHMED RASHID

Country Desperation Funding Game Military Sense Track
I think within a year or so, perhaps, if 9/11 had not happened, in Afghanistan would have been a very broad-based general uprising against the Taliban.
AHMED RASHID

Happened Political Span Thinking Uprising Within Year
All that has really happened is that Al Qaeda has escaped from Afghanistan come into Pakistan, got in touch with their contacts and friends.
AHMED RASHID

Contact Country Escape Friend Happen Really Touch
The Taliban had become deeply unpopular and were actually discarded by the Pashtun population almost as quickly as they were in the north. I don’t see the Taliban coming back in any way.
AHMED RASHID

Actually Back Coming Country Deeply Discard Population Unpopular Way
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
There was a coming and going of Al Qaeda militants and leaders between Afghanistan and Pakistan for several years.
AHMED RASHID

Coming Country Going Leader Several
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
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
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.
AHMED RASHID

Area Battle Border Car Extremist Fought Group House Provided Safe

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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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.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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