Abdullah to Boycott Runoff as Talks Break Down
Diplomats Report Karzai 'Belligerent as Hell'
Amid reports that the ongoing election talks between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and runoff opponent Abdullah Abdullah have broken down, it is widely expected that Abdullah will announce a boycott of the election, perhaps as soon as this weekend.
Following massive fraud in the first round, Abdullah has issued a series of demands aimed at ensuring the election is at least somewhat cleaner this time around. Karzai, who only grudgingly allowed the second round of voting in the first place, has rejected essentially every demand.
“Karzai was belligerent as hell” during the meetings, according to one diplomat. Perhaps sensing Karzai is in no mood to negotiate, officials have been pressuring Abdullah to abandon his demands, but there is a growing sense that the same crooked election system that was in place in August remains largely intact.
An Abdullah boycott following a first round rife with fraud would seriously damage the legitimacy of the Karzai government going forward, and also leaves open the possibility that his supporters will take to the streets in protest.
Anand
October 30th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
Karzai’s stnd indicates that he knows that he stands no chance of winning in a fair and free election. In any event, the person who should do the worrying is US President Barack Obama, given that he needs a credible government in Kabul as partner.
guest
October 31st, 2009 at 6:12 am
which is why I'm hoping Abdullah boycotts the runoff – that'd be just one more obstacle in the way of Obama escalating this war.
m70270
October 31st, 2009 at 1:35 pm
It makes little or no difference who is the president of a country under foreign occupation. Do we expect the world to honestly believe that a "runoff" is the key to a democratic institution? The current and future president of Afghanistan resides in Washington.
And just a brief comment about Karzai's rival, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah. Were he to persevere in a highly touted runoff, the next real president of Afghanistan would reside in Moscow or Tehran or perhaps Delhi or even all three. Abdullah has long ties to the former KGB and GRU and the contemporary incarnation, the FSV, supporting them during the Soviet occupation. He has also been on the receiving end of Iran's and India's largesse which facilitates much concern in Islamabad who fear the loss of "strategic depth" with a pro-Moscow-Tehran-Delhi nexus. He, like his then boss, Ahmad Shah Massoud was on the Soviet payroll all during the war with the USSR and is seen as Afghanistan's most notorious Quisling.
@cahotek
October 31st, 2009 at 3:03 pm
This sounds like a prelude to the kind of argument that got Saddam Hussein into power "It takes a strong man to rule such unruly people and unite the tribes into a National Government." I suspect the answer will be "But he's our Saddam Hussein.
joell
October 31st, 2009 at 6:14 pm
its time to stop this nonsense about the Afgan "government, elections, President Karzi" etc. on one level, we all know its a sham, but read and discuss these articles as if they're about a real government. Since the 2001 invasion. Afgan has had two presidents, George W. Bush and now Obama; the Afgan "government" is nothing but theater & illusions.
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