'Doom and Gloom'

Last year was one of Afghanistan's bloodiest since the end of Taliban rule in 2001. The embattled Afghan president, speaking with NEWSWEEK's Lally Weymouth on the sidelines of the economic conference in Davos, complained of Pakistani "complicity" with the resurgent rebels but said he saw a new seriousness about fighting Islamist terrorists from Pakistan's isolated ruler, Pervez Musharraf. Karzai also called the Bush administration surprisingly understanding about his government's warm ties with Iran—and hinted that he might run for another term in 2009. Excerpts:

Weymouth: How are the Taliban affecting you in Afghanistan?
Karzai: By trying to prevent progress, by trying to prevent reconstruction, by killing our people, by [preventing] our children in southern Afghanistan from going to school, by killing the community leaders, the religious leaders, intimidating cultural leaders. By all the means.

How strong are they now?
They would not be strong without support.

From Pakistan?
I've just had a very good trip to Pakistan, so what I would say is that Pakistan and Afghanistan and the United States and the rest of the world must join hands in sincerity in order to end this problem. They have to take [action].

The last time I interviewed Musharraf, I thought he was very angry. It's really a crazy situation [in Pakistan].
Yes, very much. I found him to be more cognizant of the problems of extremism and terrorism. And that's a good sign, and I hope we will continue in that direction.

Do you think Musharraf will do something about it, send forces into the problematic areas?
We have to end extremism. We have to end support to extremism in the region. Unless we do that, the picture is one of doom and gloom—for Pakistan, and as a consequence for Afghanistan.