Source: Reuters
* Counterinsurgency campaign pauses due to monsoon floods
* Effort to keep status quo could let militants regroup
* Report notes Zardari's sinking popularity
By David Alexander
WASHINGTON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - A White House assessment of the war in Afghanistan concludes that Pakistan's military avoided direct conflict this spring with the Afghan Taliban and al-Qaeda militants, in part for political reasons.
The biannual evaluation of progress in the war also said devastating monsoon flooding in August has prompted Pakistan to scale back its military effort against the insurgents, a move that could ultimately result in gains for the militants.
"The Pakistan military (between April 1 and June 30) continued to avoid military engagements that would put it in direct conflict with Afghan Taliban or al-Qaeda forces in North Waziristan," the report said.
"This is as much a political choice as it is a reflection of an under-resourced military prioritizing its targets," said the report, which was compiled by the White House National Security Council and sent to Congress earlier this week.
It included a cover letter from President Barack Obama saying no adjustments to the Afghan war strategy were needed.
It is a sensitive time for U.S.-Pakistani relations.
Cross-border incursions by U.S.-led NATO forces in Afghanistan killed two Pakistani border guards this week, prompting Pakistan to close a border checkpoint to trucks ferrying supplies to international forces in Afghanistan.
Since then militants have repeatedly destroyed trucks ferrying U.S. supplies, including seven vehicles on Wednesday.
The NSC report came just two weeks ahead of a third round of the U.S.-Pakistan strategic dialogue, which aims to reverse decades of mistrust between the two countries.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs played down the significance of the report. "I don't think it is surprising that we have challenges in that region of the world. Our belief is that despite those challenges we are making important progress," he told reporters.
COUNTERINSURGENCY STATUS QUO
The report used eight measures to evaluate the war against al-Qaeda and the Taliban, including progress toward disrupting terrorist networks in Afghanistan and Pakistan and degrading their ability to launch international terrorists attacks.
Details of the efforts against terrorist networks were contained in a classified annex that was not released. But the unclassified report did discuss efforts to support Pakistan's counterinsurgency initiatives.
Record monsoon flooding in August prompted Pakistan to shift its counterinsurgency strategy from clearing out insurgents in the northwest to holding the ground they had already taken, the report said.
"The current military effort to maintain the status quo could ultimately result in militant gains if extremist groups remain undisturbed in their safe havens," it said.
On the other hand, the Pakistani military's flood relief efforts have boosted its standing with the population, which the report said could improve its counterinsurgency effectiveness once the country has recovered.
The report criticized President Asif Ali Zardari, whose popularity has slumped, for traveling to Europe after the August floods, saying the move had "exacerbated inter-party tensions, civil-military relations, and damaged his image." (Additional reporting by Steve Holland, Alister Bull and Ross Colvin; Editing by David Storey)
===========
Pakistan spy agency thwarting Taliban talks: report
US newspaper report alleges ISI is pressuring Afghan Taliban members to shun US-backed peace talks. PHOTO: AFP
WASHINGTON: Pakistan’s intelligence agency is pressuring Afghan Taliban members to shun US-backed peace talks aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan, a Wall Street Journal report alleged.
Citing Taliban commanders and US officials, the newspaper said Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency has encouraged Afghan insurgents to step up attacks, including those on civilians, and resist surrender or peace talks.
“The ISI wants to arrest commanders who are not obeying (ISI) orders,” the Journal quoted a Taliban commander in Kunar province. The commander said he had no plans to stop fighting foreign troops, but war opposed to the broad-based attacks being urged by some ISI officials.
“The ISI wants us to kill everyone — policemen, soldiers, engineers, teachers, civilians — just to intimidate people,” the newspaper quoted the commander, adding that the agency had tried to arrest him when he refused.
The Journal claims US officials said they had heard similar reports of ISI pressure on Taliban members from insurgents who had been captured or agreed to lay down arms. It remains unclear whether ISI pressure on the Taliban to resist negotiations comes from the top of the agency, or is the work of lower-level intelligence personnel, US officials were quoted as saying.
The report claims some believe that the upper echelons of the powerful organisation are trying to reform it, but face opposition from rank and file members. Other US officials believe lower level officers are acting with the sanction of their commanders. “I haven’t seen evidence that the ISI is not in control of all of its parts,” a senior US defense official told the WSJ.
This is the second critical report on Pakistan’s role in the war on terror published in the Wall Street Journal this week.
The report comes amid growing tension between the US and Pakistani governments over Afghanistan, with Washington convinced Islamabad is waging a half-hearted battle against militants. The earlier report claimed that US officials fear Islamabad has avoided tackling insurgents that use Pakistani bases to launch attacks in Afghanistan to ensure continued control over the pace of the war in its neighbor.
Islamabad denies the accusations, and a Pakistani official told the Journal that the ISI was simply an easy scapegoat for setbacks in Afghanistan. “Whenever anything goes wrong in Afghanistan, ISI is to be blamed,” a senior Pakistani official told the newspaper. “Honestly, they see ISI agents behind every bush in Afghanistan.”
=========
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday rejected as baseless fresh allegations levelled by a top Afghan official that the country’s premier intelligence agency is harbouring the Taliban and al Qaeda.
“The remarks contain nothing new but a rehash of hackneyed and baseless allegations against Pakistan and its security agencies,” Foreign Office spokesperson Abdul Basit said in response to the remarks made by Afghan National Security Adviser Rangin Dadfar Spanta.
In an article published in The Washington Post, Spanta said the world is committing a blunder by embracing Pakistan as a strategic partner despite the fact that terrorism emanating from the region is affecting India, Britain and other countries.
“Pakistan continues to provide sanctuary and support to the (Taliban’s) Quetta Shura, the Haqqani network, the Hekmatyar group and al Qaeda,” he wrote.
Unfortunately, the military-intelligence establishment of one of our neighbours still regards Afghanistan as its sphere of influence, Spanta added.
“These were his personal views and not in consonance with the excellent mutual understanding and cooperation that exists between Pakistan and Afghanistan in the ongoing fight against terrorism,” the Foreign Office spokesperson said.
Basit vowed that his country would not be distracted by such unfair remarks and would continue working with Afghanistan and the international community to eliminate militancy and terrorism.
Spanta’s remarks came as The New York Times quoted unnamed officials as claiming that Pakistan’s top spy agency — the ISI — sabotaged the secret talks between the Karzai government and the Taliban while using the CIA to capture Taliban’s operational commander, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.
Baradar, arrested from Karachi seven months ago, was believed to be conducting secret talks with the Karzai government that excluded Pakistan.
The timing of Spanta’s statement is also significant as Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmay Rasul began a three-day visit to India.
Reports from New Delhi suggest that the Afghan foreign minister will discuss with the Indian leadership ways to battle the common threat allegedly emanating from Pakistan.
Commenting on the Afghan allegations, the US State Department said the extremist threat can be effectively dealt with through actions on both sides of the restive Afghan border. “In fact, we have encouraged Pakistan to take decisive action to deal with the threat within its borders. We are satisfied with the steps that Pakistan has taken thus far. And obviously, the offensive that Pakistan has started needs to continue,” the State Department spokesman Philip J Crowley said.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 25th, 2010.
No comments:
Post a Comment