Karzai inaugurated while violence continues in Afghanistan

While the Afghan leader’s inauguration went ahead in the capital, elsewhere in the country violence continued with the death of two American serviceman and ten civilians. Can Hamid Karzai really arrest this situation?

He was inaugurated for the second five-year term in the midst of increasing violence. However, the main question is how he is going to be perceived this time around.

In his speech, Karzai said he wants all foreign private companies out within two years and that in five years he wants the country to be completely controlled by Afghan forces.

“Unfortunately, it’s not realistic,” believes Malou Innocent, senior fellow at the Cato Institute.

“I would hope that President Karzai is able to eliminate the graft and corruption that is endemic in his regime, but it doesn’t appear that he would be able to eliminate the foreign defense contractors that actually surpass the number of US troops that are in Afghanistan right now”.