President Hamid Karzai has dismissed the possibility that Afghanistan could descend into the same chaos as Iraq when international troops pull out by the end of the year.
Asked by the BBC in Kabul whether what is happening in Iraq could happen in Afghanistan, Karzai replied: "Never, not at all."
In an interview released on June 18, the outgoing president said Al-Qaeda no longer has a presence in Afghanistan.
In Iraq, which the last U.S. troops left in December 2011, militants from an Al-Qaeda splinter group have been advancing toward Baghdad after taking control of much of the mostly Sunni Arab north.
Karzai is expected to hand power to his successor in August, ending his rule that began in 2001 when a U.S.-led invasion ousted the Taliban regime.
Asked by the BBC in Kabul whether what is happening in Iraq could happen in Afghanistan, Karzai replied: "Never, not at all."
In an interview released on June 18, the outgoing president said Al-Qaeda no longer has a presence in Afghanistan.
In Iraq, which the last U.S. troops left in December 2011, militants from an Al-Qaeda splinter group have been advancing toward Baghdad after taking control of much of the mostly Sunni Arab north.
Karzai is expected to hand power to his successor in August, ending his rule that began in 2001 when a U.S.-led invasion ousted the Taliban regime.