The Taliban Riddle

Obama is fed up

The Obama administration is fed up with the corrupt, ineffective Afghan President Hamid Karzai and is increasingly tired of his counterpart in Pakistan, the inept President Asif Zardari, who keeps making concessionary deals with the Taliban.

News analyst Pepe Escobar says the shortcomings of these U.S. allies have created a tough dilemma for President Obama as Taliban groups gain strength on both sides of the border and the U.S. builds up its troop strength in Afghanistan.

The administration also must sort out which of the Taliban groups might be open to overtures from Washington, a difficult task given that "Taliban" refers to a lot of groups with different agendas, Escobar says.