Amrullah Saleh interview: Mincing no words to expose Pakistan's clandestine support to the Taliban, Afghanistan's acting president Amrullah Saleh has said that 'entire country was at the service' of the insurgents. In an interview with CNN-News 18, Saleh accused Pakistan of colluding with the Taliban as it took control of Afghanistan following the pull out of international security forces led by the US.
Saleh underlined that the Taliban were under pressure in Afghanistan despite the over 20-year presence of international troops in the country as they were receiving help from Pakistan.
"It’s very clear that the Taliban were never under pressure; they used Pakistan as their support base. Not sanctuaries, the whole of Pakistan was at the service of Taliban," Saleh told CNN-News 18.
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He also went on to highlight miscalculation on part of the US, saying the more Washington provided aid to Islamabad, the more it helped Taliban.
"...the more they paid, the more it emboldened the Pakistanis to provide more services and aid to the Taliban so the issue of a nuclear state sponsoring terrorism and insurgency against western allies in Afghanistan was never addressed," Saleh said.
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"This was a political decision, not a military or intelligence one... It wasn’t the Taliban who won this war, it was the lack of political win in Washington which led to this scramble," he went on to add.
Talking about resistance against the Taliban in Afghanistan's Panjshir Valley, Amrullah Saleh said that the 'situation was under control'. "It's perfect. We are in control of the situation. I move around with minimum security. It's an area which has an exceptional reputation," he said.
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