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December 2, 2008 10:07:13 AM CST

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Bush Envoy Wants to Rule Afghanistan, Rumors Say

Posted Feb 11, 08 5:10 PM CST in Gossip,  World 

(Newser) – Diplomatic circles are abuzz about a US envoy who reportedly wants to rule Afghanistan next year. Zalmay Khalilzad, ex-US diplomat to Afghanistan and Iraq, hasn't squelched the gossip about his presidential aspirations either. He even joked at Columbia University recently that “I didn’t come here to collect contributions for my campaign.”

Afghan-born “Zal,” now US envoy to the UN, has further fueled rumors by lunching with Afghan funder George Soros and skipping meetings on Israel—both potential keys to ruling in Afghanistan, the New Republic reports. Neocon Khalilzad is also emerging politically unscathed by the 43rd presidency. Insiders say he is likely waiting to judge his strength against potential Kabul rivals.

Source New Republic

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New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, right, speaks with United States Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad, during a UN conference on climate change at the United Nations headquarters in New...   (Associated Press)
US Ambassador to the UN Zalmay Khalilzad listens during a session about Iran at the World Economic Forum in Davos 26 January 2008. Iran called Saturday on the UN Security Council to 'exercise restraint'...   (Getty Images)
Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters at U.N. Headquarters in New York in this Sept. 27, 2007 file photo. (AP Photo/David Karp, File)   (Associated Press)
Afghan President Hamid Karzai (R) and US ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad attend a press conference in this 2005 file photo. (SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images)   (Getty Images)
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Iraq • Afghanistan • United Nations • Hamid Karzai • George Soros • Zalmay Khalilzad


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