Opinion

America should call Karzai’s last bluff

If Afghan President Hamid Karzai is bluffing with his 11th hour set of new conditions for the United States and NATO to remain in Afghanistan, we should call his bluff. If he’s not bluffing, we should start packing up.

Washington thought it had Karzai’s agreement on a Bilateral Security Agreement that could keep some US troops there for up to another 10 years. The deal was endorsed by a loya jirga, an informal but influential council of Afghan notables. But at the end of a visit to Kabul by National Security Adviser Susan Rice, he suddenly sprang a new set of demands.

This is a typical Karzai tactic but enough is enough.

Karzai said he wouldn’t sign “if another [US] soldier sets foot in an Afghan home,” even though tough new restrictions on such entries have already been agreed on.

He also demanded the release of the 17 Afghanis being held at Guantanamo. We should be grateful for the chance to get rid of them, but there are necessary US legal and security procedures to be followed.

Bizarrely, he wants us to join with him in peace talks with the Taliban — although last summer, when Washington arranged such talks in Qatar, Karzai refused to attend.

Also at stake are $4 billion in international pledges to support the Afghan military after 2014 and $4 billion in development aid. If common sense won’t make Karzai see reason, maybe the money will. Otherwise, we’re out of there.