Has the West lost patience with Karzai?
Hamid Karzai left a Paris summit on Afghanistan with a fistful of dollars, and a ringing in his ears. The 65-nation conference eventually responded to aid requests with generosity and a warning that their patience has almost reached an end on seeing improvements in fighting corruption and incompetence in his administration. The alliance has begun to wonder whether they need another option besides Karzai to start seeing any improvement: Nevertheless, the conference brought both aid commitments and a warning to the weak Afghan president. Both in the general conference and in one-on-one talks, the key heads of state made it clear they were more than dissatisfied with his performance. Given his country’s persistent problems with corruption, the drug trade and an arbitrary judicial system, Karzai’s achievements have been paltry when it comes to the core issues of reconstruction. In fact, his clan is even involved in many unsavory deals. In addition to the large numbers being quoted, the har
