Nato told: ‘Define the aim of the war on terror’

Published on 20/03/2013 00:00

The Afghan government has hit back at remarks by the head of Nato, calling the alliance’s war on terrorism in Afghanistan “aimless and unwise”. Nato’s secretary-general had said Kabul must recognise the sacrifices made by other states.

In the latest outburst of vitriol from the Afghan leadership deriding its western allies, the spokesman for Afghan president Hamid Karzai said the people of Afghanistan “ask Nato to define the purpose and aim of the so-called ‘War on Terror’”.

In a statement, Aimal Faizi said the war “has failed to achieve its stated goals, but rather has resulted in the loss of thousands of innocent lives”.

Nato secretary-general Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Monday he was concerned about the harsh rhetoric between Mr Karzai and the United States.

He said: “We would expect acknowledgement from the ­Afghan side that we have … ­invested a lot in blood and treasure in helping president Karzai’s country to move forward.”