Rebuffing U.S., Pakistan Balks at Crackdown

[Turborama]

Source: NYT

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Demands by the United States for Pakistan to crack down on the strongest Taliban warrior in Afghanistan, Siraj Haqqani, whose fighters pose the biggest threat to American forces, have been rebuffed by the Pakistani military, according to Pakistani military officials and diplomats.

The Obama administration wants Pakistan to turn on Mr. Haqqani, a longtime asset of Pakistan’s spy agency who uses the tribal area of North Waziristan as his sanctuary. But, the officials said, Pakistan views the entreaties as contrary to its interests in Afghanistan beyond the timetable of President Obama’s surge, which envisions reducing American forces beginning in mid-2011.

The demands, first made by senior American officials before President Obama’s Afghanistan speech and repeated many times since, were renewed in a written message delivered in recent days by the United States Embassy to the head of the Pakistani military, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, according to American officials. Gen. David H. Petraeus followed up on Monday during a visit to Islamabad.

=snip=

The core reason for Pakistan’s imperviousness is its scant faith in the Obama troop surge, and what Pakistan sees as the need to position itself for a regional realignment in Afghanistan once American forces begin to leave.

It considers Mr. Haqqani and his control of large areas of Afghan territory vital to Pakistan in the jostling for influence that will pit Pakistan, India, Russia, China and Iran against one another in the post-American Afghan arena, the Pakistani officials said.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/15/world/asia/15haqqani.html?_r=1&hp

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There's a lot more in this article that gives great concern about the way President Obama's relationship with Pakistan is going and why this Haqqani character is emblematic of this rift.

In case you missed it, President Zardari wrote an Op-Ed in the NYT last week...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/10/opinion/10zardari.html?pagewanted=all">How to Mend Fences With Pakistan

I reckon having roughly http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,184837,00.html">100 Cable networks pumping out Fox "news" reich wing disinformation and anti Islam propaganda all over Pakistan can't be doing our image over there any favors, either.

[clear eye]

1. "the jostling for influence that will pit Pakistan, India, Russia, China and Iran against one anothe

Oh boy. The ordinary Afghani civilians are located in the way of the rivalries for an oil pipeline like a flock of sheep crossing an Interstate.

[InfiniteThoughts]

2. unfortunately

there isn't oil in Afghans.:(

History has taught all of these nations not to mess with Afghanistan. And these folks ignore it.

In fact, but for Pakistan - US would have won the war against AQ. Remember the Northern Alliance (NA) was fighting Taliban in 2001 and US & NATO was just providing them with air support in the initial days. And NA was funded by Iran, India, Russia & China to curtail Taliban while Pakistan opposed NA.

If it wasn't tragic, it would be funny to see how US trips itself every time with their Pakistan strategy

[Turborama]

3. One minute it's a gas pipeline, the next oil

It must be difficult to keep that particular conspiracy theory straight, I've seen more variations on it than any other CT I've come across.

[earcandle]

4. It's just a pipeline, huh?

[Turborama]

5. Not sure what you're getting at

But if you're saying what I think you're saying, yes, apparently all the lives and limbs lost and money spent during the Afghanistan conflict were/are for a pipeline that Karzai and some corporations will make money out of.