US seeking more ’sophisticated’ approach to Afghan corruption to smoothen ties

WASHINGTON - In an attempt to root out corruption in Afghanistan, the United States is reportedly debating whether Afghan President Hamid Karzai should be given any veto power over anticorruption efforts in his country.

According to The New York Yimes, the corruption issue was at the centre of a two-hour White House meeting on Monday.

“The discussion on corruption, in essence, is really a discussion about our relationship with Karzai,” one senior Obama administration official said.

US President Barack Obama has reportedly asked his advisers to come up with a more “sophisticated” policy toward Afghan corruption.

The senior US officials further revealed that Obama directed government agencies, including the Pentagon, the State Department, the Justice Department and the Central Investigative Agency (CIA), to develop guidelines that could isolate the corruption that fuels anger among Afghans and drives many into insurgency, as opposed to the more routine kickbacks and bribes that grease the Afghan political system.

They further discussed the role of America played in fueling Afghan corruption, specifically the billions of dollars in government money that flows into Afghanistan each year for government contracts, which, according to military officials, are redirected to the insurgency by warlords and established power brokers.

Tensions between Karzai and the Obama administration boiled this year after two anticorruption task forces wiretapped conversations of a Karzai aide soliciting a bribe and threw him in jail. Karzai later intervened to have the official, Mohammed Zia Salehi, released. (ANI)