Key Afghan leader visiting Pakistan

ISLAMABAD - An important Afghan leader Mullah Muhammad Saleh commonly known as Mullah Malang discreetly visited Islamabad and Quetta this week. It is believed Mullah Malang held crucial meetings with key 'figures in Islamabad regarding future setup in Afghanistan. Mullah Malang, a proved battle-hardened commander of Afghanistan had led Mujahideen against the Soviet Union. During the rule of warlords after the Soviet exit from Afghanistan, Mullah Malang was the Governor of Kandahar. During Taliban regime in Afghanistan, Mullah Malang lived in exile in Quetta. After Hamid Karzais appointment as the President of Afghanistan in 2001, Mullah Malang was offered the job of Advisor National Security which the Badghis-born commander refused to accept, asking his CIA friends for the top slot. President Karzai ignored him and appointed Haji Gul Agha as the Governor of Kandahar. Mullah Malang a Pashtun was elected to Afghanistans parliament in 2005. Since as per Afghan constitution, President Karzai could not run for the third term, the main contenders seeking Afghanistans presidency include a Persian-speaking anti-Pakistan US national, Zalmay Khalilzad. Khalilzad enjoys strong support from the White House but has no powerbase inside Afghanistan. Second contender, Amarullah Saleh, is also Persian-speaking and anti-Pakistan. Saleh has been over the years accusing ISI of Pakistan and China for supporting the Taliban. Mullah Malang having sufficient support in provinces like Zabul, Farah, Uruzgan, Kandahar, Badghis and other Pashtun parts of Afghanistan holds close contacts with the CIA through UniCoal Oil company. Mullah Malang has been friendly with Pakistans spy agency, ISI. At Washington DC, Mullah Malangs voice is heard seriously. According to well-placed sources in Federal Capital, Mullah Malangs secret visit to Islamabad is quite significant. For years, many people do not know that Mullah Malangs family has been living partly in Quetta and Islamabad. Presently President Karzai has put his political weightage in Pakistans basket particularly after his brother Ahmad Wali Karzais assassination allegedly by a CIA-contracted security company a new mercenaries group of infamous ex-Blackwater. Both Pakistan and Afghanistan have common interests in any future setup. But the United States and India are making every effort to upset the century-old status quo. During his recent visit to Kabul, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani delivered a stern message to the Karzai government that Afghanistan will have to consult with Pakistan regarding the number and training of its security forces. Pakistani development projects in the country should be cleared; the future government in Afghanistan will have to follow the Pakistani strategy; Pakistanis should be recruited in the [Afghan] government institutions; and Afghanistan will inform Pakistan regarding any agreement signed with the Western allies, including the US and Nato. The US forces initially agreed training programmes of Afghan officers to United Kingdom. But during last week of August the US-led Nato alliance reversed this policy by United States having sole monopoly of training Afghan National Army which has never been a part of Nato armies. Against this backdrop Mullah Malangs visit to Islamabad remains very meaningful.