Clinton Visits Karzai on Inauguration Eve
source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/world/asia/19clinton.html?hp
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KABUL, Afghanistan — In what amounted to a stern pep talk by a nervous partner, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived here on Wednesday to exhort President Hamid Karzai and his government to do a better job of cracking down on corruption in Afghanistan.
Mrs. Clinton’s unannounced visit, on the eve of Mr. Karzai’s inauguration to another term, was meant to send a message of American support for his government, after a chaotic election in which he emerged as the winner after charges of rampant ballot stuffing and other fraud.
But Mrs. Clinton said she also planned to press Mr. Karzai for tangible results in tackling other forms of corruption, which many experts cite as one of the key culprits for Afghanistan’s deteriorating security.
“We are asking that they follow through on much of what they previously said, including putting together a credible anti-corruption governmental entity,” Mrs. Clinton said to reporters traveling with her from Beijing, where she had been accompanying President Obama on his tour of Asia.
“They’ve done some work on that, but in our view, not nearly enough to demonstrate a seriousness of purpose to tackle corruption,” she said. “We are concerned about corruption. We obviously think it has an impact on the quality and capacity of governance.”
Mrs. Clinton said she was troubled that Mr. Karzai had named as one of his two vice presidents Marshal Muhammad Fahim, whom American officials believe has been involved in the drug trade, as well as forging a political alliance with General Ahmed Rashid Dostum, a warlord suspected of corruption.
“It certainly raises questions,” she said, noting that the United States would wait to see whether Mr. Karzai confronted that issue directly or sought other means to raise confidence in his government.
Still, speaking to diplomats at the United States embassy after her arrival, Mrs. Clinton said that the inauguration provided a “window of opportunity” for Mr. Karzai to “make a new compact with the people of Afghanistan” and to create a more accountable government.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/world/asia/19clinton.html?hp
Mrs. Clinton’s unannounced visit, on the eve of Mr. Karzai’s inauguration to another term, was meant to send a message of American support for his government, after a chaotic election in which he emerged as the winner after charges of rampant ballot stuffing and other fraud.
But Mrs. Clinton said she also planned to press Mr. Karzai for tangible results in tackling other forms of corruption, which many experts cite as one of the key culprits for Afghanistan’s deteriorating security.
“We are asking that they follow through on much of what they previously said, including putting together a credible anti-corruption governmental entity,” Mrs. Clinton said to reporters traveling with her from Beijing, where she had been accompanying President Obama on his tour of Asia.
“They’ve done some work on that, but in our view, not nearly enough to demonstrate a seriousness of purpose to tackle corruption,” she said. “We are concerned about corruption. We obviously think it has an impact on the quality and capacity of governance.”
Mrs. Clinton said she was troubled that Mr. Karzai had named as one of his two vice presidents Marshal Muhammad Fahim, whom American officials believe has been involved in the drug trade, as well as forging a political alliance with General Ahmed Rashid Dostum, a warlord suspected of corruption.
“It certainly raises questions,” she said, noting that the United States would wait to see whether Mr. Karzai confronted that issue directly or sought other means to raise confidence in his government.
Still, speaking to diplomats at the United States embassy after her arrival, Mrs. Clinton said that the inauguration provided a “window of opportunity” for Mr. Karzai to “make a new compact with the people of Afghanistan” and to create a more accountable government.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/world/asia/19clinton.html?hp
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