He talked about Washington's intention to compensate the victims of September 11 from Afghanistan's frozen funds

Hamid Karzai: It is morally wrong for America to take money from the poorest victim to compensate another

Hamid Karzai: The Afghan people are very concerned about the state of affairs in the country.

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Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in an interview with The Washington Post, expressed his optimism about the improvement of the current situation in Afghanistan, and stressed the need to organize an intra-Afghan dialogue to form a government that accommodates all political spectrums, and also denounced the action taken by the government of US President Joe Biden. , by freezing funds belonging to Afghanistan.

The following are excerpts from this interview:

■ More than a year has passed since the collapse of the government of (former president) Ashraf Ghani, as Western aid dried up, America froze seven billion dollars that were supposed to go to the Afghan Central Bank, the economy collapsed, unemployment rates rose, and the number of hungry people increased, and the question is: How concerned are you about this dangerous path that the country is taking?

What are the future threats if it continues on this path?

■■ Of course we the Afghan people are very concerned about the state of affairs in the country, but we also hope that we will soon be able to manage things better, and perhaps that is why I and others like me are here to look for a way out of this very difficult situation for us.

■ It has been more than a year now since the Taliban promised an inclusive government, but we don't see it. Most Afghans I've spoken to, especially ethnic minorities, say they don't trust or hope for the Taliban, and cite the fact that they're not well represented. Good in government.

Do you think the Taliban will one day establish an inclusive government?

What is required in order to achieve this?

■■ We have seen how things did not work out with the Afghan governments, which were formed from one element, or the absence of elements from our society, and I believe that it is for the interest of the “Taliban” themselves and for the benefit of the country, for this group to start a comprehensive process by launching a large Afghan dialogue, in which the Afghans can Through him talking to each other and reaching agreements on matters and moving forward.. This country needs a constitution.

■ We are sure that you discussed the need for an intra-Afghan dialogue with the "Taliban" .. What is their response?

■■ There is agreement in principle on the necessity of conducting a national dialogue for a better Afghanistan. There is agreement, but we have not yet agreed on the date of its launch and completion, and we have not yet reached what this dialogue should be.

I had the last conversation on this matter on this issue last week with a senior Taliban leader, and it's too early to say that the dialogue will be soon, but I can say that I have a better feeling about this than I did before, and let me call it Cautious optimism.

■ Does the United States bear a certain amount of responsibility for the current situation in Afghanistan?

■■ Both the United States and Afghanistan are responsible for this situation.

I have had a lot of disagreements and quarrels with the US on these issues, but I will not put all the blame on the US, we Afghans are also responsible in many ways.

■ How do you read the policies of US President Joe Biden's administration towards Afghanistan and the "Taliban" at the present time?

■■ I strongly oppose the decision to freeze the Afghan reserves, and keep half of them for distribution to the victims of 9/11, with whom the entire Afghan people sympathize. We are also victims of terrorism, and we fully sympathize with the American families who lost lives and suffered in that great tragedy that occurred on September 11. It is moral for the US administration to take money from the biggest victim, and from the poorest victim, to compensate another victim, and this is of course a big mistake.

We want to establish strong relations with the American people and the American government, and of course we also want these relations to benefit the Afghan people.

■ What must the "Taliban" do to gain the confidence of the United States and the world?

■■ First, the situation inside Afghanistan must express the will of the Afghan people, and a legitimate government must be installed inside the country with the support of the Afghan people.

Look at our schools, our girls are not able to go to school, look at Afghans fleeing the country, look at the growing poverty.

None of this will improve unless girls go to school, unless opportunities are provided, unless the Afghan people are running this country, making its decisions, representing its government, and all of this is not available at the moment, and when it is achieved, the international community can acknowledge the situation in the country.

• For the interest of the "Taliban" themselves and for the sake of the country, the group must start a comprehensive process to launch a great Afghan dialogue that will lead us out of our crisis. 

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