KABUL - In reaction to Saturday’s sudden resignation of Afghanistan's National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar, some former government officials on Sunday said his decision came after serious disagreements on policy issues between himself and President Ashraf Ghani.
They said that the text of the resignation letter shows that Atmar had serious differences of opinion with the president over Afghanistan’s regional and international issues.
Atmar did not attend the introductory ceremony of his successor, Hamdullah Mohib, on Sunday – after Ghani said earlier he accepted Atmar’s resignation in the interests of the country.  
According to former government officials, the swift approval of Atmar’s resignation by the president and the absence of any appreciation for his work on the part of government indicates disagreements between the two officials were quite serious.
“Situations in the region have pushed Afghanistan completely towards isolation. The relations and the balance that we had during (former president Hamid) Karzai’s administration have now disintegrated. Mr Amar had raised his concerns regarding these issues not today but two years ago and this could be one of the key reasons behind his dismissal,” said former presidential advisor Shahzadah Massoud.
Atmar's letter of resignation stated that he is stepping down due to "serious differences over policies and approaches at the top level of government."
“The distance between the president and Mr Atmar has been very serious, there has been differences of views, the second (problem) can be interpreted in the way and the approach the two sides had towards elections, the third  related to the approach of Afghanistan towards tackling issues related to regional peace and the engagement of regional powers in the peace process in Afghanistan,” said Aziz Rafaee, a civil society activist.
The Presidential Palace issued a statement late Saturday saying Ghani had accepted Atmar’s resignation and stated Hamdullah Mohib, ambassador to Washington, has been appointed in his place.
Mohib however has no working experience in the security sector.
“The issue that Atmar is being forced to resign is possibly because of the elections which concerned the president about the presence of Atmar in ARG (presidential palace) and in government, not only him (Atmar), but also those whom Atmar had an influence over were forced to step down,” said former deputy minister of defense Atiqullah Baryalai.
Atmar enjoyed strong relations with Ghani in the past and was even honored with a medal in 2016.
Unconfirmed reports say that Atmar resigned in order to run in next year’s presidential elections. (Tolo news)