Karzai says he hopes the president shows better judgment in his plans for Afghanistan. Karzai takes swipe at Obama

Afghan President Hamid Karzai took a shot at President Barack Obama on Sunday, saying he hopes the president shows better judgment in his plans for Afghanistan once his administration has "put itself together."

In his first major interview since Obama assumed the presidency, Karzai was asked by CNN host Fareed Zakaria on his show "GPS" to respond to charges made by Obama that the Afghan president has demonstrated a "bunker mentality."


"I was surprised to see that statement," Karzai said. "Perhaps it's because the administration has not yet put itself together. Perhaps they have not been given the information yet. And I hope as they settle down, and as they learn more, we will see better judgment."

Asked if he thought Obama understands the struggles facing Afghanistan, Karzai backtracked a bit, saying Obama "surely" understands the country.

"Surely he's a very intelligent person as well. And given the right reporting by his administration, given the right figures by this administration, he'll figure out very quickly as to how things are in Afghanistan," the Afghan president said.

Despite the rift, Karzai said he expects to be able to work with Obama. "I can certainly engage with him very, very, very positively," he said. "It's part of what has been said by him during his election campaign. It's part of the things that's been said recently."

Karzai added, though, that Obama has a tough act to follow, calling former President George W. Bush "a great person."

"I have a lot of respect for him," Karzai added.

But while Karzai praised Bush, he also accused the United States of repeatedly trying to exert international political pressure on him by leaking information to The New York Times and others that he his brother has profited from the Afghan drug trade.

“There were charges in The New York Times in 2004, just about a month and a half before the presidential elections in Afghanistan, that my brother was involved in drugs — or rumored to be involved in drugs,” he said. “Now, incidentally, Mr. Zakaria, this happened after I had a serious dispute with the U.S. and British ambassadors on a spraying from air on a poppy field in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan.”

Asked to confirm that he was accusing elements within the United States government of trying to manipulate press coverage to place pressure on him, Karzai responded: “My conclusion is that, yes, this was part of a political pressure tactic, unfortunately.”