Afghan's Ex-President Says Trump's Remarks About 'Wiping Out Afghanistan' Insult Afghans

The recent remarks about wiping Afghanistan "off the face of the earth" made by US President Donald Trump are a big insult to the Afghan people, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday

KABUL (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2019) The recent remarks about wiping Afghanistan "off the face of the earth" made by US President Donald Trump are a big insult to the Afghan people, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday.

On Monday, Trump said during his meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan that he could wipe Afghanistan off the face of the earth in 10 days but decided not to do so as it would cause 10 million deaths. The statement caused outrage in Afghanistan with country's President Ashraf Ghani demanding clarification.

"The remarks were a big insult to Afghanistan people and are strongly condemned," Karzai said as quoted in a statement.

The former president has also expressed concern over US-Pakistani discussions on peace in Afghanistan.

The scandal broke as US Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad arrived in Kabul on Tuesday.

The envoy's visit is aimed at facilitating the Afghan peace process. During his visit, Khalilzad will discuss with Kabul the formation of a national negotiating team that can participate in intra-Afghan negotiations. The diplomat will then travel to Qatar's capital Doha to hold talks with the Taliban movement.

Afghanistan is suffering from an unstable political, social and security situation due to the activity of the Taliban movement and the Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia). The national security forces, supported by the international coalition, are involved in counter-terrorism operations across the country. Meanwhile, Kabul and the Taliban are trying to launch reconciliation talks.