Afghan President Hamid Karzai has supported the signing of a security agreement with the United States, which President Obama says will uphold the respect for “Afghan sovereignty.” However, Karzai says he will defer the agreement to the winner of the next presidential election. Obama tried to urge on the deal, and said in a letter that “we look forward to concluding the agreement promptly.” However, Karzai is insistent that it wait until next year’s election. “If you accept it and Parliament passes it, the agreement should be signed when the election is conducted, properly and with dignity,” Karzai said
The United States may decide to back out in light of this latest development, because officials want to begin preparations for a longer military presence as soon as possible. Reportedly, the U.S. and NATO would keep between 8,000 and 12,000 troops in Afghanistan.
However, complications between both countries have led to a lot of questions about security, and Karzai says he is not convinced that the U.S. has the best interest of Afghanistan in mind. “It all turns to trust, and between me and American there is not very good trust,” he said. “I don’t trust them and they don’t trust me, the last 10 years has shown this to me. I have had fights with them and they have had propaganda against me.”
