ABSTRACT
The dawn of the twenty-first century is in many ways different as well as similar to that of the twentieth century in Afghanistan. The twentieth century in Afghanistan began with a concentration of power and a centralized state under one ruler, whereas the twenty-first century in Afghanistan began with fragmentation of power and a decentralized state with a changing shift in the dynamics of power across many power-holders inside and outside the country. In 1901, Habibullah succeeded his father Amir Abdur Rahman, and inherited a centralized government and a peaceful country. By contrast, Karzai inherited a deeply traumatized country, shocked by the years of war and political turmoil, suppressed by the previous regime, and governed by many independent and semi-independent power-holders in various parts of the country. In addition, the financial, political, and military power was dispersed across many different foreign states and international organizations. While Habibullah was dependent on British support alone, for which he had to obey and follow British policies, particularly British interests in India, Karzai and his government have been dependent on the United States and her allies primarily, and have to follow the policies that matter to their interests in the country and in the region. In addition, neighbouring countries, such as China, India, Pakistan and Iran have been exercising a considerable influence on state policies in Afghanistan. Consequently, Karzai and his cabinet have been placed in a situation where the dynamics of power have been continuously shifting across many different centres inside and outside the country. All power-holders have continuously been in a state of give-and-take, and there is little doubt that this process of policy-making and policy-implementation would make the life of any politician and any government extremely hard.
