The news that President Obama’s administration was assessing zero military presence option in Afghanistan pushed the environment of fear and wariness a degree hotter. If the decision becomes ultimate, that will be in complete opposition to security alerts by top military commanders and advisors. Meanwhile, generally Afghan analysts stick to the old calculation that it is really hard for US to close the chapter of war in the country and withdraw its forces, which it did in Iraq. Putting a glance to headlines of analysis, columns and editorials of newspapers, somehow all are in consensus on the notion that such statements are made only to ratchet up pressure on Kabul government to confer legal persecution to US forces.

Definitely, this notion largely breeds on the old, deep-rooted, foreign-biased concept that no one comes to the country to help people, but has their own interests. If asked what interests, everyone talks about some unknown matters which exist across the country. If asked what matters are you talking about? It is really hard to hear a clear-cut answer. One talks of fuel, other talks about copper, and recently giant expensive matters like lithium and uranium are also highlighted. If questioned that from where they have extracted, you will receive a strange, hateful look, and likely, and aggressive tone of voice as saying, “You are in dream man”, and no nothing about plans of foreign countries.

 Unfortunately, the notion is very common among Afghans and those who are deemed as educated or the so-called intellectual layers of the society that has remained unable to take itself out of infectious environment.

In the last week’s speech in George Washington University, President Karzai said that he looked from angles of foreign media; the situation of his country was horrible. But he could not look because his country has transformed in tremendous way and 2014 would be a very memorable year for Afghans.

However, it is quite possible that the information in foreign media is far nearer to ground reality in comparison to that of domestic ones. Because, reports released by foreign media are based on investigative journalism while reports are collected from internet websites by some of the Afghan journalists. I hope the situation was similar to what reflected in President’s speech in the university. Certainly, we could have been much optimist if there were signs that most part of people has accepted the democratic values and remain committed to protect it.

But if the cabin with number 39 remains empty in the Loya Jirga (grand assembly) where two thousand elites of the country come together to take decision on such critical national issues that you did not believe Parliament has the right or the capacity to deal with; and if in Kabul university which otherwise should be the stronghold of modern values supporter, students get killed for the mere celebration of their religious rituals; and if the PhD holders and writers of tens of books and articles gets rejected on account of illiteracy; and tens of other if’s; is there any hope for future when, though far unlikely, international community once again leave us alone?

To those who never give up the propaganda of fueling foreign hatred: During past years, I have heard different reasons by different people aimed to convince that foreign countries benefit larger in comparison to their losses. Those with religious background are telling that Allah Almighty said in the Holy Book that Jews and Christians never become friends with Muslims. Interesting, when there are verses of Holy Quran, like ‘There is no compulsion for anyone to choose a religion for himself’, everybody says that Holy Quran is not easy to translate. It needs years of efforts and high command on Arabic literature, at the first place, and secondly verses can only be translated in relation to its context. But in the case of verse like that above (Jews and Christians never become your allies with you) everybody becomes a translator.

The second category that does not have Arabic literacy, or has not heard much of religious scholars sermons, or those who try to pretend to assess the ground situation through the so-called educational perspective, claim that foreign countries benefit from the war in the country. Their main obsession as well as the very reason that pushes them to deliver a disturbed interpretation is ‘how it is possible that

Washington spends billions of dollars without reimbursing them from the country’. As I mentioned the main source that mostly pointed out are unknown natural resources or the recently detected huge natural wealth. Presently, when the US and its military allies have decided to pull out, still nobody believes that they are withdrawing. Some ask, they have not extracted the natural resources, how they have decided to leave. And even those who have believed that they are really leaving again say, “Oh, they have already taken whatever they could during past eleven years”. But what they have taken? The answer that US and other countries raised military compounds in places where they previously detected mineral resources, for instance, in Helmand province which has huge source of uranium, can be best explored from the experts.

It is requested from experts in the related fields to play their parts and make it clear for people that natural resources cannot be tapped unnoticed. Hope such explanations, though hard, bring down the level of foreign antagonism, which paves the way for constructive alliance with foreign allies, which benefit all sides.