Carter hails Ghani’s role in rebuilding Afghanistan

WASHINGTON (Pajhwok): US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter on Sunday praised President, Ashraf Ghani’s role in rebuilding his war-ravaged country.

Ghani and his Chief Executive Officer Dr Abdullah started their official engagements on Monday morning from the Pentagon, where they thanked the US forces for its role in bringing peace to Afghanistan.   

While welcoming the Afghan leaders, Carter said: “In short, Ghani demonstrates that public service is a public trust. And along with Dr. Abdullah, he has made clear Afghanistan’s future is ultimately for the Afghans to decide.

He acknowledged Ghani had led an extraordinary life and had deep ties to the United States, where he won a fellowship as a young man to study at the American University in Beirut.

Through some of Afghanistan’s darkest days, when the Soviet Union invaded and many of his family members were persecuted and jailed, Ghani always guarded his faith in a brighter future.

“As a scholar, he studied state-building and how to break the cycle of conflict. And has a practitioner at the World Bank, he applied those lessons, managing large-scale economic development projects and helping ease the transition in Afghanistan,” he added.

Always focused on the future, Ghani co-authored one of the most comprehensive studies of peace agreements around the world, the secretary explained.

As president, Ghani’s initiatives to ensure decisions and not just discussions, snap inspections and personally holding government officials account, the defense secretary noted.

“On behalf of all Afghans, he is here today to thank you and to thank all the Americans whose service has not only kept the United States secure, but also given hope and opportunity to his countrymen as well,” he said.

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