NATO decides to work with Karzai's brother in Kandahar

Times:

Nato has taken one of the biggest gambles of its mission in Afghanistan by reluctantly deciding to collaborate with Ahmad Wali Karzai, the notorious power-broker of Kandahar.

In spite of allegations that the half-brother of the President, Hamid Karzai, is involved in the drugs trade, senior Nato officers have concluded that they will have to work with Wali Karzai.

The decision comes as Nato planners continue preparations for their next big push against the Taleban in Kandahar and as the Afghan President prepares to depart for Washington where he is expected to meet President Obama next week.

Although senior coalition officers would prefer to see the back of Wali Karzai they have come to the conclusion that their only option is to work with him. They are trying, in the words of one officer, to “re-model” a man accused of running a private fiefdom in the south.

On Saturday Wali Karzai held a meeting with the US Central Command commander in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, in the latest in a series of contacts designed to rehabilitate and influence the activities of the chairman of Kandahar’s provincial council.

“The plan is to incorporate him, to shape him — unless you eliminate him, you have to (do this),” said a senior coalition official involved in planning what is viewed as this summer’s make-or-break military operation in Kandahar. “You can’t ignore him,” he added. “He’s the proverbial 800lb (363kg) gorilla and he’s in the middle of a lot of rooms. He’s the mafia don, the family fixer, the trouble-shooter,”.Although the meeting with General Petraeus was described as friendly insiders say that the American commander reminded Wali Karzai of a checklist including the appointments of local district and police chiefs that he was encouraged not to interfere with.

...

I hope the encouragement was effective, or we will be fighting a two front war in Kandahar. I am not optimistic about his roll in the Kandahar operation, but if he stays out of the way, I think the troops can control the streets of Kandahar. My major concern is Obama's preference for an early departure from Afghanistan. I think that gives the Taliban an incentive to avoid a fight then com back after we leave.

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