Last Call

The Afghans are setting new ground rules for dealing with the US, and it looks like a partnership is in the cards for the two countries.

An overwhelming majority of the participants of a loya jirga or the grand council of elders on Saturday backed President Hamid Karzai's call for a long-term partnership with the United States that would come into effect after the withdrawal of international troops in 2014.


“In order to protect the achievement of the last 10 years and given the political situation in the region, a strategic partnership with the United States is considered to be necessary for the political, economical and military stability of the country,” the meeting's final resolution said.

But that agreement would require the U.S. to agree to a complete halt of night raids, an end to the arbitrary jailing of Afghan suspects, the closure of all American detention centers in Afghanistan, and the transfer of all Afghan detainees to government-run prisons, according to the resolution, which was issued on the fourth and last day of the council.

Karzai said that he had worried that the jirga might reject the strategic partnership or that the participants would take a soft approach toward the issue and fail to set out enough conditions. But Karzai said he was satisfied with the result. “I absolutely agree with it,” Karzai said.

Karzai convened the grand meeting, which was attended by more than 2,000 delegates from across the country, to advise his government on what framework should govern a strategic partnership with the United States. Included in the meetings were members of parliament, tribal elders, members of provincial councils and representatives of Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan. The delegates were divided into 40 committees to discuss the issues.

Karzai said his government would use the recommendations to guide future discussions with the United States.

As 2011 have proven several times so far, "this is what democracy looks like".