The US and Karzai's little brother

It would seem that the Americans just do not know what to do about Ahmed Wali Karzai. The younger half-brother of Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president, is the head of the provincial council of Kandahar province, and the unrivaled power-broker of what the Taliban used to call the "southern zone" of Afghanistan. A legitimate tribal leader of the powerful Durrani Popalzai in his own right, Ahmed Wali has pervasive contacts and influence throughout the tribally-dominated society of his region. He is staunchly loyal to his older brother, and certainly no friend of the Taliban or, still less, of al-Qaida. As one of the few people who can actually get things done in greater Kandahar, Afghanistan's second-largest city, the traditional base of the Taliban and the scene of a looming US-led military push which some believe could determine the outcome of the current counter-insurgency struggle, one would think that the US government would be reinforcing its relationship with Ahmed Wali Karzai - particularly when Afghan-led local governance is seen as key to victory over the Taliban.