Afghanistan Times
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By Hazratullah Habibi
The Afghan government needs to rethink of finding alternative if the US is not interested in supporting Afghanistan anymore and quitting it forever. Last week, the US Secretary of States Mike Pompoe visited Afghanistan to mediate between the two rivals, President Ashraf Ghani and his former chief executive Abdullah Abdullah who made separate inaugurations on the same day as claimant to the presidency of Afghanistan. Mr. Ghani was declared officially as the President of Afghanistan by the Independent Election Commission (IEC) while Mr. Abdullah declared himself as shadow President of Afghanistan. Pompoe had failed to make the mediation between the two opponents and went back quite disappointedly, and threatened that the $1 billion is going to be reduced from the approved aid to Afghanistan if the previous habitable supporting strategy is not implemented in the coming years, then Mr. Ghani is compelled to look for another alternative to run the Afghan government so as to feed Afghan nation, fight against current insurgents and make the constructive progresses properly.
Mr. Pompeo also said that the suspension or cutting down of US aid is condition based unless both political leaders come together to form a government, the US is still insisting on inclusive government but so many impartial Afghans have not been happy with the US`s policymaking and posing lots of unanswerable questions whether America is building the Afghanistan`s government or ruining it. On the other side, if the Afghan sub- leaders and presidential candidates did not show their curiosity to an inclusive government, President Ghani would strongly refuse suggestions of the US secretary of states Pompeo and would not pave the way on a power sharing government which was once experienced but did not work out well in the past. Now, Mr. Ghani stood firmly on his stance and his campaigning commitments not to share power with anyone. If President Ashraf Ghani ascends power again unfortunately, as he did; drank a glass of poison in 2014 by sharing power with Abdullah Abdullah for the sake of national interests and national unity of the country may remain unstable as it had been unsecured, unstapled and unemployed for years.
Since the US deployed its troops in Afghanistan in 2001 and toppled the Taliban regime since then that Russia has stopped political support and changed ways of its international policy with Afghanistan. There are many motivations that Russia longed for supporting Afghanistan; Russia offered Ex. President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai alternatives but the US discouraged him not to visit Russia to talk about military and financial supports from Russia; therefore, political tensions occurred between Mr. Karzai and Mr. Obama administrations.
Recently, the Russian special representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov stated that the American objective has been exposed and added that Afghanistan is a superfluous country for the U.S, the Russian special representative for Afghanistan professed this in an exclusive interview with Izvestia newspaper.
Mr. Kabulov added, the US decision to privatize the Afghan war is not decisive. he said the American war strategy failed in Afghanistan and Russia deliberates the existence of U.S troops in Afghanistan undefined. The US proclamation to privatize the Afghan war opposed by the people of Afghanistan; so Russia seems to be keen on helping Afghanistan based on some conditions if America intends to entirely withdraw from Afghanistan.
The Russian special representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov also capitalized the revealed offers for supporting Afghanistan at the moment the US claims that Russia is supporting and even giving military equipment to the Taliban, in an exclusive interview, former NATO forces commander in Afghanistan Gen John Nicholson explicitly slung accusations that Russia is financially supporting Taliban and Russian weapons have been trafficked through the Tajik border to the Taliban. Gen Nicholson believes this straight Russian contribution with the Taliban is comparatively new; nonetheless, Russia has denied such sorts of allegations by the US, citing a lack of evidence. Russia also claimed that the US put accusations of its failure in Afghanistan on others.
Besides, Russia held a trilateral dialogue with Beijing and Islamabad on the future of Afghanistan. Significantly, the priority was given to Kabul as the legitimate government of Afghanistan after the invitation of Taliban by Russia and its open connections with the terror group and wider international recognition of the Taliban by significant world powers and regional countries made the US to come to an agreement with the Taliban on its own terms as unrecognized government but recognized political party.
Though Russia and the United States have got similar intentions in Afghanistan, both want stability, peace empty-hideout of the insurgents, they express their definitions very differently. It is a known fact that the 19-year-milititry service of the US to Afghanistan has approved that the U.S. goal does not look forward to creating a strong central government in Kabul and a well-resourced and well-trained national security force; Russia, meanwhile, working with a wide range of actors, some of which compete directly with the government in Kabul in this regard the Ex- President of Afghanistan , Hamid Karzai visited Moscow so as to have found another alert alternative but its result has remained disappeared so far.
Astonishingly, Afghanistan is run for the second consecutive term by President Ashraf Ghani, which is under pressure of the US to change its stance but Mr. Ghani has not agreed to the proposition of the US. On the other hand, Russia is said to be ready to assist Afghanistan based on some situations. Now it is another challenging period for President Ghani if the US refuses helping, and desires to quit Afghanistan gradually after 19 years of its deploy in Afghanistan, what will be the future of this penurious country, Afghanistan at this critical state of affairs?
President Ghani government will opt two ways to carry on what to do for Afghanistan’s future stability: He would confess what the US says or would find another alternative to be supported by, America or Russia.
It is necessary for all stakeholders of Afghanistan to make decisions based on the national interests of Afghanistan and obstinate from any kind of intervention in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and work for a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan which is in the interests of the entire region and the world. If the US leaves Afghanistan at this critical juncture, cut down all its aid, it is clear that Afghanistan would turn into the hub of international terrorism and extremism which will create an obscure climate for the entire region and the world and then it would be difficult for the international community to control the situation in Afghanistan.
