Pakistan Seeks Afghan Talks Between Government, Taliban And US

Viewpoint: Pakistan Seeks Afghan Talks Between Government, Taliban And US -- Ahmed Rashid, BBC

Pakistan's military has undergone a dramatic shift in policy in recent weeks, writes journalist and author Ahmed Rashid. After a decade spent allowing the Afghan Taliban sanctuary and freedom to sustain its insurgency in Afghanistan, it is now pushing for peace talks between the Taliban, the Afghan government and the Americans before Nato forces withdraw from Afghanistan in 2014.

Pakistan's change of heart - if sustained - could open up several new tracks in the peace process, bring about a ceasefire with the Taliban, encourage a wider regional settlement and improve Islamabad's own fraught relations with Washington. Most significantly, a ceasefire and peace talks with the Taliban could dramatically improve the chances of survival for the weak Afghan government and army once Western forces leave.

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My Comment: When it comes to Pakistan, I have learned that is always best to remain skeptical .... after-all .... this is the same country that imprisoned the doctor who helped the CIA find Bin laden.

Pakistan Is Expressing Concern On The Upcoming U.S. Military Surge In Afghanistan

Photo: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. Photo from the CBC.

‘Increase In US Troops May Make Pakistan’s Situation Worse’ -- Dawn

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said increase in US troops in Afghanistan might lead to a spill over of militants inside Pakistan and make the situation worse. Hence, western countries should evolve a joint strategy against the Taliban on the Pak-Afghan border, he said.

In an interview with German Press Agency ahead of his first visit to Germany as the prime minister, Gilani stressed the Obama administration would have to formulate the military strategy for Afghanistan in consultation with Pakistan.

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My Comment: I see this concern from the Pakistani PM as an admission (and confession) that many of the Taliban fighting in Afghanistan are from Pakistan. What can one say .... you reap what you sow, and Pakistan has been sowing these Islamic extremists for years.

Tackling The Afghanistan-Pakistan Problem -- Analysis and Commentary

From The Middle East Times:

Last week, Iran was invited to attend the international conference on Afghanistan in The Hague. This invitation was part of U.S. President Barack Obama plan to get Afghanistan's neighbors actively involved in being part of the solution rather than part of the problem. At that conference, Iran unsurprisingly criticized the occupation forces but said that it would help regarding the drug problem. The question remains: how much will Iran help?

After Pakistan and NATO, Iran is the most important player in Afghanistan. Iran has a long history with Afghanistan: Afghans settled in Iran hundreds of years ago. Today an estimated 2 million Afghans are believed to be living in the Islamic republic, but about 50 percent of them are illegal immigrants.

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Part 1 is here.

My Comment: This entire region has been experiencing distrust, hatred, war, poverty, and suffering for centuries. I am very skeptical that NATO intervention will change the dynamics for what has been the status quo for all this time .... but maybe .... just maybe .... in a few places there will be a spark for reform and progress, and we will be able to see it in the next few generations.

Crunch Time in Afghanistan-Pakistan

U.S. soldiers patrol in Khost province, eastern Afghanistan. Picture: REUTERS

From Small Wars Journal:

Dr David Kilcullen, a partner at the Crumpton Group and author of The Accidental Guerrilla, is the former Special Advisor for Counterinsurgency to the Secretary of State and a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security. He worked in Afghanistan and Pakistan on counterinsurgency and counterterrorism strategy in 2005-6 and 2008. In 2007 he was the senior counterinsurgency advisor to General David Petraeus, in Baghdad.

Senator Joseph Lieberman made a timely and well-argued call, during his recent speech at the Brookings Institution, for a comprehensive political-military campaign in the Afghanistan-Pakistan (AFPAK) region. Seven years into a long war, we need to be honest with ourselves about the harsh strategic choices we face. And we need to recognize that before we can expect long-term strategic progress, we first have to deal with an immediate, acute crisis that could derail the entire effort this year. Let me first discuss long-term strategic choices, then turn to the immediate crisis, and conclude with some remarks on Pakistan.

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My Comment: A long post .... but it summarizes perfectly what is at stake.