Atta Mohammad Noor, Balkh provincial governor and possible presidential candidate, on Wednesday said the US and Nato have failed in their mission in Afghanistan, although he conceded that some positives have come as a result of the foreign presence.
In an interview with TOLOnews, Noor said the US-led mission was full of mistakes and so had not reached its desired goals.
"The Nato mission has had a lot of mistakes such as the killing of civilians which is still going on. And compared to the money which has flowed here, not much work has happened. The goal was to bring security and eliminate violence, but this they didn't reach," he said.
Noor criticised the peace process adopted by the Afghan government, saying he did not expect it to yield any results.
"The [High] Peace Council is wasting its time and spending its money. What is the response? Suicide and the killing of our elders and leaders," he said. "Unless Pakistan cooperates honestly, there will not be any lasting peace nor will there ever be a sovereign government in Afghanistan."
Noor said the plan to open an office for the Taliban in Qatar was only done because the Americans first plan had failed.
"The US couldn't provide security and decrease violence and so now, in a second attempt, it is turning to peace talks in order to maintain its hegemony in the region and the world. The US conducted the Qatar process to turn the Taliban into a political movement and bring them onto the scene," he said.
The Taliban has repeatedly refused to enter into peace talks with the Afghan government, but were meeting with the US until the start of 2012.
Noor is not entirely critical of the outcomes of the foreign military presence, pointing out that some good has come as a result.
"But here were positive points too, like the fledgling democracy in the country, in education with most students going to school, and lots of other good things," he said.
"With all this, it must be said that Afghanistan needed the international community, and still needs it."
However, he is opposed to any ongoing military presence.
"I must say that I am against having US permanent bases in the country because we want to stand on our own feet and we should not rely on others," he said.