"IMF calls for troubled Kabul Bank to be closed; Afghan officials urged to begin receivership plan" February 17, 2011|Adam Schreck, Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan — The International Monetary Fund is pushing for Afghanistan’s troubled Kabul Bank to be placed into receivership and then quickly sold off as part of a broader effort to stabilize the country’s shaky financial system.
The IMF made the recommendations Tuesday after a visit by fund officials to assess the Afghan economy and work through an impasse over extending Kabul further credit....
The last thing the Afghans need is an IMF austerity program.
The bank has close ties to Afghanistan’s ruling elite. Sherkhan Farnood, the former bank chairman and a world class poker player who raised money for President Hamid Karzai’s reelection campaign, owns 28 percent of the bank’s shares. The president’s eldest brother, Mahmood Karzai, owns 7 percent. A brother of one of Afghanistan’s two vice presidents is also a shareholder.
How many villas do they have in Dubai?
Afghanistan’s central bank took control of Kabul Bank in mid-September after a run on the lender sparked by the removal of two top executives. It has spent the past several months combing the lender’s books to determine the size of its exposure and recoup loans.
The bank plays a key role in the Afghan economy by handling payrolls for government workers and security forces.
Oh, so it is the bank into which AmeriKa is pouring money.
Afghan officials have repeatedly tried to reassure the public that the lender is sound, hoping to prevent another bank run that could further destabilize the country’s fledgling banking system....
Placing Kabul Bank into receivership — a type of bankruptcy — is the most appropriate mechanism for resolving problems there, the IMF said. “This will be followed by a process where the bank will be rapidly sold or wound down and the central bank is recapitalized with government resources as needed,’’ the IMF said.
Related: American Taxpayers Bailout Afghan Bank
Hey, what is another billion dollars you don't have, Americans? All down the corrupt rabbit hole of AmeriKan-sponsored allies in a far-flung land where we really have no business.
That stance puts the IMF at odds with Afghan officials, who want to keep the bank afloat.
Afghan leaders have said they would stand fully behind Kabul Bank and are committed to collecting all the lender’s outstanding loans.
An investigation by Afghanistan’s attorney general is ongoing.
A $120 million IMF lending program ended in September.
Afghan officials hope to regain the support of the IMF or risk losing millions of dollars in international aid that depends on good standing with the fund....
But the bankers don't run the world. That would be a conspiracy, and the only conspiracy in Afghanistan is 19 Arabs from the caves.
--more--"
And speaking of the devils:
"At least 8 killed, scores injured in attack on Afghanistan bank" February 20, 2011|Adam Schreck, Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan — Gunmen wearing bomb-equipped vests stormed a bank in eastern Afghanistan yesterday as government employees were waiting to be paid, killing at least eight people and wounding scores of others in a standoff punctuated by deadly explosions.
At least 48 people were being treated in the main hospital in Jalalabad, the site of the attack, hours after the midday siege on the Kabul Bank branch, said Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary. Others had already been discharged.
The "terrorists" lending the IMF a hand in helping close the bank?
Bashary said seven of the dead were Afghan police officers. Three others were also killed, he said, but investigators were trying to determine if two of them were the suicide attackers.
Gunmen launched the raid by firing on bank guards, then overpowering them to seize control of the bank, said Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, a spokesman for the provincial governor. Afghan security forces surrounded the building and heard an explosion inside, he said.That was followed by a gunbattle and another blast, then more gunshots.
The wounded included civilians, police, and Afghan soldiers, said Dr. Saif ul-Rahman, a physician at the hospital.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said was aimed at Afghan security forces.
I never believe my newspaper when they claim that now. Maybe they did, maybe they didn't. The point is I'm not going to find the truth in the war-promoting propaganda paper.
President Hamid Karzai and NATO condemned the attack. “Once again, this un-Islamic act of terrorists shows that they don’t want Afghan people to live in peace and prosperity,’’ Karzai said....
Now I'm starting to think "Al-CIA-Duh" or one of their Afghan assets.
In the capital, Kabul, Karzai called for Afghans to have the final say in whether the United States should be allowed to maintain a long-term military presence in the country — even as America’s top diplomat insisted that it does not seek permanent bases there.
Yeah, sure. I've heard that before, but somehow wherever we never seem to leave once we arrive.
Discussion of permanent bases resurfaced in recent weeks after US Senator Lindsey Graham proposed their establishment last month. Karzai’s stance reflects a desire to assert greater control over the country’s future as US troops prepare to begin drawing down this year.
Speaking in response to a question at a press conference, Karzai said a number of American officials have raised the issue of establishing permanent US bases in Afghanistan as part of broader negotiations on a long-term security partnership.
That's why people like me never wanted these damn thing to start in the first place: once we are there we never leave.
He didn’t say whether any formal requests had been made. The Afghan people should have the final say on any bases, Karzai said, adding that the decision would need to take into consideration the concerns of neighboring Iran, Pakistan, and China.
Ooooooooh! Not what the AmeriKan empire wanted to hear.
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"Karzai blames foreigners for bank woes" April 12, 2011|Washington Post
KABUL — Officials responsible for the near-collapse of Afghanistan’s largest bank last year will be prosecuted, President Hamid Karzai said yesterday. He laid a significant portion of the blame for the collapse on Western advisers, saying they should have alerted his government earlier to the bank’s problems.
They were basically running the thing. Hell, they are the ones who set it up!
Karzai said at a news conference that all former shareholders of Kabul Bank — including his brother, Mahmoud Karzai, and a brother of the vice president — have had their connections to the bank severed and that “all wrongdoers, whoever violated the law’’ will be “dealt with legally.’’
He also said his government is investigating the role of foreign advisers working with Afghanistan’s banking system.
“Hundreds of millions of dollars have been paid to these individuals and organizations to help the banking system of the country and they failed in their task,’’ Karzai said.
Kabul Bank was a recklessly run institution that gave out hundreds of millions of dollars to Karzai’s political allies and bank insiders to finance their companies and luxury real estate without the expectation of repayment.
The Central Bank last year seized control of Kabul Bank, prompting a run on deposits and forcing the Afghan government to bail it out to stave off collapse.
To the tune of about a BILLION BUCKS, American taxpayers.
--more--"
So when are the TROOPS going to be BAILING OUT, huh?
"US to begin talks on security deal with Afghans; Gates rules out permanent military bases" March 08, 2011|Robert Burns, Associated Press
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the United States is interested in keeping a military presence in this former Al Qaeda haven beyond the planned end of combat in three years....
He said “we are not leaving’’ this summer.
“Come September, October and beyond, there will still be substantial numbers of coalition troops. The specifics remain to be negotiated, but I would say that if the Afghan people and the Afghan government are interested in an ongoing security relationship [with some level of US military presence], the United States, I think, is open to the possibility of having some presence here in terms of training and assistance,’’ possibly using Afghan bases.
But they won't be permanent bases, right.
And if they are not interested?
--more--"
Also see: Out of the Mouth of Gates
I'd rather just hand the whole thing off to whoever:
"Karzai lays out plan for Afghan troops to assert more control; Security hand over to begin in some areas as of July" March 23, 2011|By Ernesto Londono, Washington Post
KABUL, Afghanistan — President Hamid Karzai announced details yesterday of the first stage of a plan to give Afghan forces more powers, saying his countrymen “don’t want foreigners to take responsibility for security anymore.’’
That makes sense seeing as we are not providing it.
Related:AmeriKa Has Lost Afghanistan
Can we just come home then? Let the liars declare victory if they want; I just want to rotten war to end.
Under the plan, Afghan forces will assume the nominal lead for security of two relatively secure provinces and five cities in July.
The beginning of the hand over will coincide with the scheduled start of the US military pullout, which commanders have said will be slow and gradual....
This is all show s***.
The transition is happening at a time of deepening concern about the toll the war is taking on civilians and amid uncertainty about the prospect of reaching a negotiated truce with the Taliban and other armed groups....
The excuses for staying are already being trotted out.
The grievances that have emboldened the insurgency: airstrikes and night raids conducted by NATO troops....
Who can blame for "grievances?"
Related: Afghans Despise AmeriKan Detention Dungeons
***************
Karzai also said the international community should provide financial assistance for vital infrastructure projects even as he argued that the provincial reconstruction teams, meant to train government officials and assist their activities at the local level, should be phased out.
I thought they were.
“As we move toward the transition process, all foreign parallel functions and institutions including private security firms, the PRTs, existence of the militias, detention of Afghan citizens by foreign forces, and arbitrary house searches must stop immediately,’’ he said. “Taking action on these demands would be a basic condition in shoring up a national sovereign state.’’
He said international assistance should be channeled through the Afghan government’s budget.
He also criticized the United Nations’ efforts as duplicative and sometimes ineffective.
While Karzai’s announcement showed his nation’s desire to end its reliance on foreign forces, it was not evidence that Afghan security forces have overcome a lack of training and equipment, illiteracy, corruption, and shortages of top Afghan officers and international mentors.
And here I was told the training, etc, was a success.
Still, the beginning of transition is a boost to troop-contributing nations that want to reassure war-weary citizens back home that their commitment to Afghanistan is not open-ended.
Um, WE ARE SICK of CARROTS being dangled in front of us.
And we are MORE than WEARY, we HATE THEM and WANT THEM OVER NOW!!!!
In Brussels, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen welcomed Karzai’s announcement, but warned that transition was not a signal for allies to withdraw from Afghanistan....
Translation: There is really no transition at all. They just want you "war-weary" populations to simmer down. Just a few more years(?)!
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But at least troops will begin leaving, right?
"Afghan drawdown to include combat forces" March 17, 2011|Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The initial US troop withdrawals from Afghanistan in July probably will include combat as well as noncombat forces, the top US commander there told a House committee yesterday.
Army General David Petraeus mentioned no numbers, nor did he identify which combat units might be pulled out to begin what President Obama has called a responsible winding down of the war by 2014. Yesterday’s hearing was the second of two days of testimony on Capitol Hill for Petraeus....
It is widely expected that a large share — if not the majority — of those initial American withdrawals will be support forces.
--more--"
What did he say?
"Petraeus says pullback plan for troops is forthcoming; Tells lawmakers tide is turning in Afghanistan
March 16, 2011|Associated Press
General David Petraeus, in his first hearing before Congress since taking command in Afghanistan last summer, said the tide is turning in the war....
For the umpteenth time.
A new Washington Post-ABC poll that said nearly two-thirds of Americans consider the war no longer worth fighting.
Beware of the FALSE FLAG ATTACK, Americans!! You seem to need CONVINCING again!
In his assessment of the war, Petraeus said that much of the Taliban’s battlefield momentum has been halted....
Also see: US pulling out of once-key Afghan valley
Taliban take control of mountainous region in Afghanistan
One wonders what being on a roll would look like.
Petraeus cautioned that security progress is still “fragile and reversible,’’ with much difficult work ahead as the Taliban launch an expected spring offensive.
I'm at the point where I no longer listen to the military double-talk.
With tougher fighting ahead this spring and summer, it seems likely that the first troops to be withdrawn in July will be support forces like cooks and clerks, not combat troops....
And yet the next day.... sigh.
Petraeus cited recent battlefield progress, but also expressed concern that Congress was not providing enough money for the State Department and the US Agency for International Development to ensure that military successes are translated into economic and political advances.
These guys with their HATS in HAND every frikkin' time they go up to the Hill.
Hey, general, did you see the machete they just took to social services? Then shut the f*** up.
He also cited a troublesome but still modest effort by Iran to undercut efforts in Afghanistan by arming, financing, and training the Taliban.
Okay, now wait a minute.
This is the SHI'ITE POWERHOUSE IRAN helping the SUNNI EXTREMIST Taliban that consider Shi'ites worse heretics than non-believing Americans?
The same Sunnis and Shi'ites allegedly killing each other across the Muslim world (when they are not intermarrying)?
The SAME TALIBAN that IRAN ALMOST WENT to WAR WITH in the 1990s?
PAKISTAN TALIBAN ARMED WITH WEAPONS FROM USA, GERMANY AND INDIA
Oh, General Dave spewing lots of doo-doo!
Several lawmakers who have traveled to Afghanistan in recent months seconded Petraeus’s optimism, citing military progress in Afghanistan’s restive south....
You will see why those eyeball assessments mean nothing below.
Some lawmakers also were unnerved by the poll that found that the share of Americans who say the war is no longer worth fighting rose from 44 percent in late 2009 to 64 percent in the poll conducted last week.
And those are generous numbers. I think the number is closer to 80-85. Americans may not say it because they rarely talk about it; however, they ARE sick of the wars and want them over.
And what to we get from our "democratic" government? MORE WAR!
Petraeus acknowledged the growing opposition.
“I think it is understandable that the American people could be frustrated that we’ve been at this for 10 years and, you know, we haven’t won yet,’’ he said.
Because the GOAL is to BE THERE to PROTECT DRUG PROFITS for BANKS and GUARD ENERGY PIPELINES in the region.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, called on Obama to set a firm timeline for redeploying combat troops from Afghanistan.
She said Al Qaeda threats from the Arabian Peninsula and elsewhere are more urgent than the threats from Afghanistan.
Quit throwing up that PoS propaganda please.
“New Yorkers, the American public, and the American taxpayer have grown weary of the war in Afghanistan with good reason,’’ Gillibrand said in a conference call with reporters.
Yeah, we DON'T LIKE KILLING PEOPLE over a CROCK of LIES to ADVANCE some GLOBALIST SICKOS IDEAS of EMPIRE!!
Over the last decade, Americans have spent $336 billion to pay for the war, she said....
Holy crap!!
Which means IRAQ must be WELL OVER a TRILLION by NOW!
And LIBYA has already cost BILLIONS with NO END in sight.
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And those lawmakers that seconded Petraeus and his optimism?
"Military looks into 'psy-op’ charge; Story says senators were manipulated in Afghanistan" February 25, 2011|Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Washington Post
The investigation stems from an article published yesterday on the website of Rolling Stone magazine alleging that Lieutenant General William Caldwell, head of the US and NATO training operation for Afghan forces, used an “information operations’’ team to “manipulate visiting American senators’’ and other visitors, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen....
And if they will do it to them what makes you think they are not doing it to you, Americans?
It's been lies, lies, lies the whole time!
Among the senators allegedly targeted by the team were John McCain of Arizona, a Republican, Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, and independent, and Democrats Jack Reed of Rhode Island and Carl Levin of Michigan....
The lieutenant colonel, Michael Holmes, who was assigned to Caldwell’s headquarters last year, said in the article that he was asked to find ways to manipulate the lawmakers. Holmes says he was asked: “How do we get these guys to give us more people? What do I have to plant inside their heads’’
That is what agenda-pushing, war-promoting newspapers are for.
Holmes said he objected. “My job in psy-ops is to play with people’s heads, to get the enemy to behave the way we want them to,’’ Holmes is quoted as saying. “When you ask me to try to use these skills on senators and congressmen, you’re crossing a line.’’
The article did not cite evidence of false or misleading information being provided to the senators and other visitors.
No, we have newspapers for that.
Yeah, they were manipulated but not lied to.
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And Hillary just put the hold on withdrawal:
"Clinton says hasty Afghan pullout will hurt progress" April 15, 2011|By Matthew Lee, Associated Press
BERLIN — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton warned NATO allies yesterday against bringing forces home from Afghanistan too soon, even as the United States prepares to begin drawing down its forces in July.
Clinton said the Taliban will be watching what the alliance does in the coming months and that speedy reductions will hurt the fragile security gains the alliance claims. The United States is worried that pressure will grow within the alliance to match US withdrawals and answer rising discontent with the war in Europe.
Clinton told NATO foreign ministers that an exodus of other forces would make it appear to the Taliban that withdrawals were a sign of alliance weakness and defeat.
WHO CARES what it LOOKS LIKE?
The United States and its NATO partners cast the planned reductions as a mark of success and the beginning of a transition to Afghan control that would allow all foreign forces to leave eventually.
NATO has invested too much to risk that perception, Clinton said.
“We need to ensure that these sacrifices are not overtaken by political expediency and short-term thinking,’’ Clinton said. “We need to worry less about how fast we can leave and more about how we can help the Afghan people build on the gains of the past 15 months.’’
Pfffft.
President Obama, who approved more than 40,000 additional forces for Afghanistan in the first year of his presidency, has pledged to begin withdrawing US troops in July. The initial withdrawal is expected to be modest, but it is politically significant as a mark of US intention to begin shouldering less of the load in Afghanistan and bring all combat forces out by the end of 2014.
Except Gates said.... sigh.
As the plans for that withdrawal move ahead, Clinton stressed that the alliance had “to underscore that we are transitioning, not leaving.’’
Yeah, I understand, yup. Not leaving.
*************
She said the Taliban and other extremist groups would seize on any opportunity to claim victory.
I wish we would. Then we could leave.
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Also see: Conn. soldier dies in Afghanistan
N.E. Marine, soldier killed in Afghanistan
Mass. Guardsman killed in Afghanistan
National Guardsman laid to rest
Think of those as deposits, America.
