Everett, Wash.
Published: Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Afghan vice president visits Puget Sound area to thank soldiers

The leader comes on the invitation of a Monroe resident.

By Yoshiaki Nohara
Herald Writer

 KIRKLAND -- Afghanistan Vice President Mohammad Karim Khalili is visiting the Puget Sound area on the invitation of a Monroe man.

On Monday, Khalili said he wants to thank the families of American servicemen and women who are helping to turn Afghanistan from a country of despair into one of hope.

"There are a lot of people who have sent their loved ones to Afghanistan," Khalili said through an interpreter. "I'm in Washington to show my appreciation for the sacrifices of those soldiers."

Monroe resident Aziz Sadat, a native of Afghanistan, organized the vice president's first trip to the Evergreen State.

"I hope trips like this will strengthen the relationship between U.S. and Afghanistan," Sadat said. "This will encourage local people to pay attention."

The trip is unofficial, said Sadat, who splits his time between Monroe and Afghanistan. He declined to share details about where the Afghan leader will visit while here, citing security.

Khalili met with Vice President Dick Cheney and other federal officials in Washington, D.C., before flying to Seattle on Saturday night. On Monday morning, Khalili spoke about the future of his country at the Woodmark Kirkland Hotel.

The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on American soil triggered the U.S. invasion into Afghanistan in 2001. That led to the fall of the Taliban and initiated major positive changes in the once-isolated nation, Khalili said. New schools have been built, and opportunities have opened up for women, who were oppressed by the Taliban regime.

"Day by day, Afghanistan is moving toward prosperity," he said.

Still, the nation needs continued support from other countries, especially the U.S., Khalili said. Many people are living below the poverty level, and the poor regularly are recruited to become terrorists or drug smugglers.

Sadat is chairman of Afghanistan National Institute for Peace and Justice, which is part of World Trade Center Kabul. He said he plans to bring more high-profile Afghan officials to the Puget Sound area so that Washingtonians can learn more about change in Afghanistan.

Sadat, 46, first came to the United States as a high school exchange student in Longview. He went on to study architecture and political science at the University of Washington. He obtained U.S. citizenship about the same time the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1980.

News reports tend to focus on Iraq, but what's happening in Afghanistan also affects the United States, Sadat said.

"We neglected Afghanistan in the past. That's why Afghanistan attracted terrorists," he said.

Sadat and others like him are connecting U.S. leaders with their Afghan counterparts, Khalili said, and it all adds up.

"Each drop, when they join each other," he said. "They will create a river."



Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
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