KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan’s finance minister warned Saturday that the release of leaked U.S. diplomatic cables will hurt U.S.-Afghan relations, and he denied a report that he called President Hamid Karzai an “extremely weak man.”
Afghan Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal said it will no longer be “business as usual” between key Afghan ministers and U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry. The rift could jeopardize Eikenberry’s effectiveness as America’s top diplomat in Kabul at a time when U.S.-Afghan relations are already strained.
Zakhilwal said he never called Karzai “an extremely weak man” as reported in a U.S. Embassy cable dated Feb. 26, 2010.
The report is “absolutely, categorically wrong and false,” Zakhilwal said. “This leaves no trust between me and the ambassador — extremely little trust.”
He accused Eikenberry of misquoting him in the cable to further Eikenberry’s own opinion of the president.
“The ambassador has used my name to support his views of the president,” Zakhilwal said.
Eikenberry, a retired lieutenant general who once commanded troops in Afghanistan, warned last year against sending substantial numbers of troops because Karzai was not a reliable partner.
Eikenberry did not immediately comment on Zakhilwal’s remarks.
Details from a vast tranche of cables released by the WikiLeaks website portray Afghanistan as rife with graft to the highest levels of government. The leaks could further erode support for the nine-year war and bolster the concerns of U.S. lawmakers who have threatened to hold back aid until they are convinced the money will not end up lining the pockets of the political elite.
Karzai’s spokesman, Waheed Omar, has said that the presidential office was reviewing the documents, but that he did not believe they would strain U.S.-Afghan relations. He could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday.
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