Editing Hamid Karzai (section)

===Financial ties with CIA and the government of Iran===
On 28 April 2013, ''[[The New York Times]]'' revealed that from December 2002 up to the publication date, Karzai's presidential office was funded with "tens of millions of dollars" of black cash from the [[CIA]] in order to buy influence within the [[Politics of Afghanistan|Afghan government]]. The article stated that "the cash that does not appear to be subject to the oversight and restrictions." An unnamed American official was quoted by ''The New York Times'' as stating that "The biggest source of corruption in Afghanistan was the United States."<ref name="nytimes1">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/29/world/asia/cia-delivers-cash-to-afghan-leaders-office.html|title=With Bags of Cash, C.I.A. Seeks Influence in Afghanistan|author=Matthew Rosenberg|newspaper=The New York Times|date=28 April 2013|access-date=29 April 2013|archive-date=28 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130428232309/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/29/world/asia/cia-delivers-cash-to-afghan-leaders-office.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 17 June 2013, Senator [[Bob Corker]] put a hold on $75 million intended for electoral programs in Afghanistan after his inquiries of 2 May 14 May and 13 June to the [[Obama Administration]] regarding the CIA "ghost money" remained unanswered.<ref name="Corker">''Senator puts hold on some Afghan aid over Karzai "ghost money"'', [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-congress-idUSBRE95G11F20130617] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016132054/http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/17/us-usa-afghanistan-congress-idUSBRE95G11F20130617|date=16 October 2015}}, Reuters, 17 June 2013</ref>

Karzai also admitted that his office received millions of dollars in cash from the Iranian government.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shalizi |first=Hamid |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-afghanistan-karzai-idUSTRE69O27Z20101025 |title=Karzai says his office gets bags of money from Iran |work=Reuters |date=25 October 2010 |access-date=22 March 2014 |archive-date=22 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322061429/http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/10/25/us-afghanistan-karzai-idUSTRE69O27Z20101025 |url-status=live }}</ref> Karzai stated that the money was given as gifts and intended for renovating his Presidential Palace in Kabul. "This is transparent. This is something that I've even discussed while I was at Camp David with President Bush."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ctvnews.ca/karzai-confirms-iran-provides-his-office-with-cash-1.566949 |title=Karzai confirms Iran provides his office with cash |publisher=Ctvnews.ca |date=25 October 2010 |access-date=22 March 2014 |archive-date=22 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322051155/http://www.ctvnews.ca/karzai-confirms-iran-provides-his-office-with-cash-1.566949 |url-status=live }}</ref>