Karim Khurram, former chief of staff to ex-President Hamid Karzai, has rejected allegations made by former US National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster that he and Karzai were under the influence of Pakistan’s intelligence agency.
McMaster had described Khurram as a Pakistani agent in a recent interview.
McMaster, in an interview with Afghanistan International, alleged that Karzai and Khurram were influenced by Pakistan’s intelligence agency, the ISI, and described Khurram as a Pakistani agent.
Speaking to the same outlet on Saturday, Khurram categorically denied the claims, insisting that his and Karzai’s positions on the Afghan war, US night raids and other issues were not shaped by Pakistan. He argued instead that McMaster’s policies and those of his local allies deepened Afghanistan’s dependency on Islamabad.
“Everyone has been tested on Afghanistan’s battlefield,” Khurram said, while reiterating his opposition to US-Afghan security and strategic agreements. Khurram, seen by some Afghan and American officials as a source of friction between Karzai and Washington, maintained that his stance was based on opposition to a US war strategy that “killed innocent civilians and fuelled hatred and terrorism.”
He further alleged that McMaster, once tasked with combating corruption in Afghanistan, was selective in his approach and ignored the misconduct of those aligned with him. “One of our colleagues presented documents on this matter to him in the presence of the president,” Khurram said.
Khurram also claimed that as US national security adviser in 2017, McMaster authorised the use of the “Mother of All Bombs” in Afghanistan, and with support from allies inside Ghani’s government contributed to the Republic’s collapse. He did not provide further details.
McMaster, who served as US national security adviser from February 2017 to April 2018, played a central role in shaping Afghan policy. Khurram previously served as Afghanistan’s minister of information and culture before becoming Karzai’s chief of staff.
