This is one of the paradox of American policy. The war on Afghanistan started with the use of money as the main tool. The Northern Alliance (NA) was actually a group of warlords (legacy of Afghan war on Soviet Union) that had only a remote semblance of unity. It is the US which practically used money as the enticement to form a singular objective to fight the Taliban.Two weeks after 9/11, the agents of CIA flew to Panjsher Valley to hand out $3 millions to NA leaders, followed shortly with another $10 million. The continual payment (or bribe) was an essential ingredient to ensure these warlords' support of the Karzai administration. The exemplary example is General Fahim who bought up property and an entire gold market in Kabul. The Americans obviously underestimated the complexities of Afghanistan especially its intricate tribal relations. However the fatal flaw in the war policy is that there was no nation building objective in the initial plan.
