President Obama Presses Afghanistan on Better Governance
“President Obama’s strong focus on governance in his weekend trip to Afghanistan underscores a basic fact of America’s engagement in that country – unless the Afghan government can get its act together the actions of the United States and international community, no matter how much improved, cannot lead to lasting success in Afghanistan. It is painfully clear that Hamid Karzai has not established a credible government in Afghanistan and that the corruption, poor delivery of services, and overall lack of accountability of the Afghan government are the weakest link in an already fragile international engagement,” says Asia Society Executive Vice President Jamie Metzl, author of a recent column, “Afghanistan Is Lost Without Better Governance."
Jamie, who is in New York, served as an election observer in the August 2009 Afghan elections. To arrange an interview, contact the Asia Society communications department at 212-327-9271 or [email protected].