Pakistan's role in regional stability

As President Obama laid out his plan for Afghanistan last week, the potential for regional violence originating from Pakistan continued to remain a defining issue in the War on Terror. Inside its borders, Pakistan remains a breeding ground and haven for jihadist groups as the government has lost any legitimacy in "the battle for Pakistan's soul" that President Zardari wrote about last September. Pakistan's military has failed to crackdown on militant activities, and with the effective breakaway of parts of the tribal areas to Taliban sympathizers, the Zardari administration has failed the world.


Monday's attack targeting a police academy in Lahore was the second major attack in the country within days, following the bombing of a mosque along the Khyber Pass, and reminded the world of how volatile the situation remains. The attack revealed the vulnerabilities of the forces expected to conduct counter terror operations, yet also served as a reminder of how the War on Terror in Pakistan has become a lazy slogan for President Zardari to beg the West for money.


The simple fact remains that Monday's attack should not have happened, and Pakistani intelligence was more than likely either complicit or unaware of any plot. Baitullah Mehsud's Tehrik-e-Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack. Mehsud has been sought since an arrest warrant was issued exactly one year ago for his masterminding of the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Her assassination left the PPP in search of a presidential candidate, eventually namingZardari, her widower.


Upon the PPP's election into power, the new government sought to negotiate with groups spreading violence in the country, including Mehsud's. The results of such talks can now clearly be seen on the countless casualty lists from domestic attacks. No peace has been achieved, and the handover of the Swat valley to Taliban sympathizer Sufi Mohammad will yet again serve as a reminder that terrorism is simply whatjihadists see as a means to gain their authority.


Pakistan remains in denial of its role for spreading violence. The first finger pointed for any major attacks within Pakistan comes from Interior Minister Rehman Malik to "foreign elements." See this article after the police academy siege. Hours later, the commander of Pakistan's Tehrik-e-Taliban Baitullah Mehsud claimed responsibility and Malik, as usual, was forced to correct his misstatement. The empty hand begging for Western "aid" continues to remain extended, with no formidable successes to provide examples that Pakistani forces are willing, or even capable, of fighting terrorism. Prior to Monday's attack, President Zardari opted to take the typical politician route and make excuses for his administration's failure:


"In a rare interview with Sky.com, Zardari vowed to make Pakistan a better and stronger country in the near future, and adding it can still win its struggle against terrorism.
He announced that the battle to counter terrorism is now Pakistan’’s war.

Zardari however, said it would require more help from the United States and Britain to overcome the menace.Putting side the international community's claims that Islamabad has been poured-in with aid and assistance, Zardari said: We haven”t received a dollar. Until then, we don”t have the tools to fight."


Perhaps President Zardari is referring to the U.S. announcement in January that it was cutting money from the Coalition Support Fund. The U.S. deducted nearly $55 million from the previous $156 million figure provided. After the Obama administration laid out its plan for economic aid in Pakistan being linked to the country's performance in fighting terrorism, Prime Minister Gilani whined that "Pakistan has already done enough." The War on Terror will not be won through military strength alone, but blank checks will not contain the ideas that jihadist groups seek to implement.


As politicians throughout the world question the war on terror, people are dying. It is time for Pakistan to quit outsourcing this struggle and adopt it as its own. U.S. drone strikes should not be the only War on Terror that President Zardari can speak of, yet they are the only forcescombating terrorism inside Pakistan. How many people will have to die before it is seen that terrorist groups are not just crazed maniacs seeking to kill people, but they have an agenda that they seek to establish through fear and bloodshed? Terrorism is a means to an end, and so long as that end is out of reach, this cycle of violence will continue to plague everyone in Pakistan.



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Just a brief side note, I wish this was an April Fool's joke. U.S. envoy Richard Holbrookeannounced today that the State Dept. intended to surge counter terror funding for Pakistan.

"He said the administration backed a measure sponsored in the House that would create economic opportunity zones along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.Another bill – sponsored by House Foreign Relations Committee Chairman HowardBerman and top two members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee – would triple aid for Pakistan to $1.5 billion annually for five years."