The EU And Afghanistan

While America is enthralled in the sexual behaviour of two of their top brass, little has been mentioned in the US press about the EU's cut in financial aid to Kabul.

The EU cites inefficiency - rather hypocritical when the same EU's books have never been signed off - and 'lack of progress in governance and justice system reforms'.

What did they expect?  Surely the evidence was plain to see?  The Afghanistan government are corrupt and have no intention of changing any of their systems because they know money will continue to fall into their hands.

The EU's cuts will not worry Mr Karzai and his pals, because although the planned $25m aid meant to reform the Afghan justice system has been postponed, the EU gave the go ahead to a new financing agreement allocating $76m for programmes of efficient governance and 'justice for all'. The EU member states have been financing special programmes for years and have already spent %1.5 billion on the country's development over the last decade.

You may remember in July this year donor nations held a conference in Toyko where they agreed to spend $16 billion through to 2015 to prevent Afghanistan sliding into chaos after foreign troops pulled out at the end of next year.

Will Karzai take need of the reasons for the postponement of this money when, although his country has had $25m postponed, they will be receiving a further $76 million?  Of course not. He will continue to blame the corruption on the foreign troops and tell the EU and US what they want to hear.  He is aware that there's a good chance that his government will fall apart once the NATO troops withdraw. As soon as they do there's little doubt Karzai, with some feeble excuse, will resign and speedily catch a plane to a country which will support his affluent lifestyle.

Shame on our politicians for pouring money into a country which will never change - because the people don't want change. When will the west waken up to that fact?

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