His comments on American involvement in the war were at odds with the government of his successor, President Ashraf Ghani, which has welcomed U.S. political and military support. "I want to be allies with the United States, I want to be partners with the United States," he said. "We must remain the owners of this house, the United States of America, a guest." As for the Taliban, Karzai said he saw little change in tactics since the death of former leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour in a U.S. drone strike on Pakistani soil in May. "I would call on the Taliban to be free from foreign influence - in this case Pakistan, the Pakistan intelligence and military," Karzai said.

Source: Egypt Independent September 15, 2016 08:15 UTC