ISLAMABAD (AP) – Cricket legend and potential Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan on Monday criticized the United States’ new strategy for Afghanistan and said a continued military campaign will not solve the 16-year-old conflict in the neighboring nation.
Khan, who is considered a likely contender for premier after next year’s parliamentary elections, also rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s allegation that Pakistan harbors extremists who battle American troops in Afghanistan.
He said Pakistanis “felt hurt” when Trump announced in August that he was sending more U.S. troops to Afghanistan and at the same time accused Pakistan of sheltering militants. Pakistan has had thousands of civilian and security forces killed during the war on terrorist groups, Khan said.
“I think Donald Trump’s policy is deeply flawed. He neither understands the history of Pakistan nor the character of the Afghan people,” Khan said in an interview with The Associated Press.
He said that if the Taliban is “still resurgent in Afghanistan, then there are some other reasons, and the reason is that there is an indigenous movement in Afghanistan. For centuries, Afghanistan has resisted all foreign invaders.”