KABUL – It was a harrowing international debut for Chuck Hagel, whose first trip to Afghanistan as U.S. defense secretary went dramatically off-script and challenged the American narrative about the 11-year-old war.
His first full day in Afghanistan began with the sound of suicide bomb attack about a kilometer away from his morning meetings at a NATO facility. But the real damage came the next day when Washington’s mercurial ally in the war, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, accused the United States of colluding with the Taliban hours before the two met. [ID: nL3N0C2093]
Put in an awkward position, Hagel appeared cautious and at pains to avoid sharply criticizing the Afghan leader in public, even as he firmly disputed Karzai’s assertions.
In private, Hagel requested and had a private one-on-one meeting with Karzai where he was “firm and direct” with the Afghan president, a U.S. official said. Hagel declined to provide reporters with details of the private exchange.
Asked about Karzai’s comments, White House national security advisor Tom Donilon cited “difficult questions” surrounding the transfer of security control from the NATO-led force to Afghan soldiers.
“We’ve had challenges before. We’ve continued to work with President Karzai. But we’re I think on track to meet the goals we’ve set for ourselves,” Donilon said in response to a question after a speech in New York.
Having weathered a brutal confirmation battle last month, Hagel, a former two-term Republican senator, at one point even appeared to publicly commiserate with Karzai.
“I was once a politician,” Hagel, 66, told reporters traveling with him. “So I can understand the kind of pressures – especially leaders of countries – are always under.”
Hagel’s more measured approach was on display as well on Saturday, when he was asked about his initial reaction to the sound of the blast from a suicide bombing at Afghanistan’s nearby defense ministry, which killed nine civilians.
