Terrorist Islamic Republic of Pakistan (TSP): 15 Jan 2012

[Nandu]

Shows that there is not just an overt bias, but a covert conspiracy where the robes are colluding with the khakis.

[svinayak]

http://www.c-span.org/Events/Hudson-Ins ... 737427091/

WASHINGTON, DC
Friday, January 13, 2012

The Hudson Institute hosted a discussion examining the influence of Islamic fundamentalism on Pakistan's policies. Panelists discussed the situation involving former Pakistani Ambassador to the U.S. Hussain Haqqani.

Panelists included, Marvin Weinbaum, Scholar-in-Residence, the Middle East Institute; Stephen Cohen, Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution; C. Christine Fair, Assistant Professor, Georgetown University; and Lisa Curtis, Senior Research Fellow at The Heritage Foundation. The panel will be moderated by Teresita Schaffer, non-resident Senior Scholar, the Brookings Institution. Hillel Fradkin, Senior Fellow and Director of Hudson Institute’s Center on Islam, Democracy, and the Future of the Muslim World, gave the introductory remarks.

Updated: Friday, January 13, 2012 at 1:24pm (ET)

[Cosmo_R]

Behind Tharoor's back, it's all kutta stuff.

They pull this stuff off every time.

True, true. But then you develop a wide range of contacts and some of them may turn out to be useful, to varying degrees. Perhaps for a suitable quid pro quo.

How useful are 'contacts' who say one thing to your face and another behind your back? No rebuttals means you accept the tag.

[Cosmo_R]

From Ahmed Rashid in Financial Times

Pakistan urgently needs stability

I don't have access to full article.

Try the Google Cache:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/s ... z1k2fIRmVH

[Satya_anveshi]

Not sure if this was posted earlier:

IK, born again spiritual leader, talks to UnDtv: Transcripts

NDTV: What does Imran Khan's ascendency mean for India? Because there are those who are concerned that you if you do come to power you will be a hardliner. We have seen many references to Kashmir in your rallies and on the other hand in India we sort of all know you, in a cricketing context. You have legions of fans, women still love you and then there is an Imran Khan, the politician, who is seen as a radical, who is seen as a conservative.

Imran Khan: So much confusion. On one hand, here I'm accused of being a Jewish lobby, which is the worst you can say.

NDTV: Because of your marriage?

Imran Khan: It is at one extreme and there is Taliban Khan on the other extreme. Why this confusion? Have you ever wondered why this confusion?

NDTV: You tell us. What does it mean for people in India who love you otherwise but are scared of your politics?

Imran Khan: Because people love putting people in stereotypes, because he is religious, he is rightist. Why? In my opinion someone who is religious, is spiritual, is going to be compassionate. A Leftist? For me, I'm closer to the left than right.

NDTV: You wrote in your book that you had two idols in university, Mick Jagger and Karl Marx. That's quite funny.

Imran Khan: In university, yes, Mick Jagger and Karl Marx. Even now I think I find someone like Tariq Ali who is not religious but who is a Leftist. I find my views are far closer to Tariq Ali than probably anyone else. So I don't fit in those stereotypes. I'm deeply spiritual. I lead my life with my faith but I'm totally leftist in my thinking, I'm anti-neo liberal economics, I think there should be compassion in the world, I believe in a welfare state. So they can't place me and secondly as far as India goes that is your question, I do believe that there has to be a resolution on Kashmir but I don't believe in any military solution, I don't believe in any militancy. I believe it should be politically, it should be done on the table. There should be a political roadmap. I do believe that Indian Army should not be there because in 20 years what it hasn't solved by six-seven hundred thousand Indian troops , it's not going to solve in the future too. I don't believe in the military solution.

NDTV: Would you like to see more civilian control over the ISI and the military?

Imran Khan: I think that a Tehreek-e-Insaf government, you will find, will be different to all other governments. It will be a government, which will take responsibility for everything happening in Pakistan.

NDTV: Tell me this, because I know you come to Mumbai often, the shadow of 26/11 as India see a Hafiz Saeed saying all kinds of inflammatory things at his rallies. We see him being able to operate with impunity. What would you say to Indians? You have so many Indian friends and you love Mumbai. You come there so often.

Imran Khan: Look, Hafiz Saeed's case is in the Supreme Court. Everyone trusts the Supreme Court. You look at the polls today people are standing behind the Supreme Court. I always believe in the due process of law. If anyone is accused of anything you must put him through a court. I completely did not agree with this American killing of Osama bin Laden. I think they should have dealt with him the way they dealt with Saddam Hussein, because Saddam Hussein was tried and executed. But it did not have the same martyrdom thing, which Osama has had. I mean Osama is a martyr because of the way in which they killed him.

NDTV: You think he is a martyr here in Pakistan?

Imran Khan: Amongst various people he is a martyr. In the Muslim world you will find that amongst various people he is a martyr. The way to avoid that was to put him through a trial, accuse him. Look, civilised countries follow the due process of law .

[Satya_anveshi]

Pakistan is other name of fiefdom..punjab is fiefdom of shariff and chaudhary brothers, Sindh is of Bhuttos, Baluchistan is of Marris/Bugtis/mengals et al. The uber-fiefs of NWFP don't have a good political leader who does not dorn AK47 or an RPG. I think IK is taking that place. Once he gets his hands burnt up by PA, then truly all these fiefs can rip apart pakistan like a goat gets played in buzkashi. What is happening today is just pre-game prep work as the goat is getting hallaled before the game begins.

[Satya_anveshi]

I know it is far too much of an expectation but on this day, as a mark of tribute to Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan, also known as Sarhad Gandhi, the first foreign person to be awarded Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, I feel a person like him is the need of the hour in Pukistan. He and his movement was against partition but later have adopted pakistan as their home and reconciled. It is unfortunate that the tall leaders in that movement were not leveraged in the nation building.

Pakistani society needs to turn towards reflection, give up violence, and adopt all the ideals of Khudai Khitmatgaar movement and practice it for a generation or two. In that it has the salvation otherwise its fate is that of a goat in buzkashi as I mented in my earlier post.

[Satya_anveshi]

Hakimullah still safe in North Waziristan: sources

[CRamS]

Apology accepted. Same thing repeated over and over practically in every single post, does get old soon.

I don't understand, what is it that I repeat that gets old? I mean it is worth re-iteration that SDRE containment is central to US policy in dealing with TSP lest we loose sight if this. Even now, just witness the mumbo jumbo from Uneven & Co about TSP being too nuke to fail, all useless pedantic narratives to masquerade the real motive of US in propping up this terrorist abomination.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-new ... 91691.aspx

Civil-military imbalance in Pak impeding Indo-Pak ties: Tharoor
Press Trust Of India
Islamabad, January 05, 2012

The civil-military imbalance in Islamabad is a key factor impeding India-Pakistan relations despite a large constituency for peace in both countries, former Indian minister Shashi Tharoor said in Islamabad on Thursday. The dominant role played by the security establishment in shaping

With all due respect what is the stick here?

And while there may be some civil military tensions, elementary BR 101 on TSP should remind you that when it comes to India, civilians by and large are on boards. You thing Gropper is some kind of peacenick? You think any civilian will dare touch Hafeez pig?

[Anujan]

http://tribune.com.pk/story/324799/mass ... -religion/

Mass conversions: For Matli’s poor Hindus, ‘lakshmi’ lies in another religion

[shiv]

True, true. But then you develop a wide range of contacts and some of them may turn out to be useful, to varying degrees. Perhaps for a suitable quid pro quo.

How useful are 'contacts' who say one thing to your face and another behind your back? No rebuttals means you accept the tag.

Well, as useful as retaining ties with the US for saying one thing and doing another thing behind India's back
Click

As early as 1954, Pakistan
received U.S. military aid in defense against potential Soviet aggression. However, the U.S.
assured India that these arms would not be used against India in aggression. Rather these
arms were a condition of Pakistan’s commitment to Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
(SEATO), a collective defense organization against Soviet aggression. In the 1960s, Pakistan
violated both stipulations of this aid. In 1965, U.S. arms were brought to bear against India in
the second Kashmir war. As well, Pakistan was the only SEATO country that did not contribute
in any way to the Vietnam conflict. xxxi Similarly, Pakistan received U.S. aid throughout the
1980s, some of which it channeled to the ‘freedom-fighters’ conducting insurgency in India-
controlled Kashmir.

[SSridhar]

. . . I feel a person like him is the need of the hour in Pukistan. . . . Pakistani society needs to turn towards reflection, give up violence, and adopt all the ideals of Khudai Khitmatgaar movement and practice it for a generation or two. In that it has the salvation otherwise its fate is that of a goat in buzkashi as I mented in my earlier post.

Satya_anveshi, even when Bacha Khan was alive, he was jailed in Pakistan (by ZAB in 1976 when Bacha Khan was already all of 87 years old). The self-appointed Sole Spokesman of the Moslems despised him for obvious reasons and the Spokesman's likes and dislikes were truthfully carried into the Islamic Republic (like lying, fraud, thuggery and violence, among a number of other such things) and etched in stone forever. Bacha Khan was always looked at with suspicion in the new state. Like all those who were found to be inconvenient to the State or even suspicious, were branded as anti-Islam, the same happened to Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan as well. He and his son, Khan Abdul Wali Khan, were depicted as apostates and enemies of Pakistan both overtly and covertly. That kind of branding is the takfiri spirit and it has pervaded Pakistan for a long time. The National Awami Party (NAP) which was founded on the same secular principles of the Khudai Khidmatgar party of Bacha Khan was banned by Z.A.Bhutto and not only its leaders like Ajmal Khattak, but also Bacha Khan himself, had to flee Pakistan and take asylum in Afghanistan. When Bacha Khan died, there was national mourning by the State in India and absolutely none in Pakistan.

Today's Pakistan is far more radicalized than even the 80s. There is only hope for salafists there.No hope for Gentle Giants.

[Manny]

<snip>

there are enough threads for discussing India's problems, spare this one.

[jrjrao]

In the US edition of the Wall St. Journal. From who I presume is Najam Sethi's daughter.

THE WEEKEND INTERVIEW
JANUARY 21, 2012

A Hostage in Pakistan
Husain Haqqani, Pakistan's former ambassador to the U.S., is living under house arrest. The reason? He offended the country's military.

By MIRA SETHI
Islamabad, Pakistan

'There are forces in Pakistan that want us to live in fear—fear of external and internal enemies." So warns Husain Haqqani, until November Pakistan's ambassador to Washington and now a de facto prisoner of the Pakistani generals whose ire he has provoked. "But just as the KGB and the Stasi did not succeed in suppressing the spirit of the Soviet and East German people, these forces won't succeed in Pakistan in the long run, either."

I am speaking to Mr. Haqqani in a spacious room in the official residence of Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, where the 55-year-old former ambassador—wearing a cotton tunic, loose trousers and white rubber slippers—has been living for weeks, mainly for fear that he might be assassinated outside. The living arrangements may seem odd for those unfamiliar with Pakistan's fractured politics. But his fear is not ill-founded.

Mr. Haqqani's fall from political grace began on Oct. 10, 2011, when an American businessman of Pakistani descent, Mansoor Ijaz, took to the op-ed pages of the Financial Times to broadcast an explosive claim. In the aftermath of the Navy SEAL raid on Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan, Mr. Ijaz alleged, he was approached by a "senior Pakistani diplomat" to pass on a memo to Adm. Mike Mullen, then chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. The memo sought U.S. help in fending off a possible military coup in Pakistan and effecting a civilian takeover of the country's security program.

Some weeks after publishing his op-ed—and, it turns out, after secretly meeting with the chief of Pakistan's premier spy agency, Inter-services Intelligence (ISI)—Mr. Ijaz claimed that Mr. Haqqani was the diplomat who had asked him to draft the memo. He said he had corresponded with Mr. Haqqani via Blackberry messages, phone conversations and emails to formulate the memo.

Mr. Haqqani denied the allegation and returned to Pakistan to clear his name after "Memogate"—as the issue was breathlessly dubbed in Pakistan's media—threatened to rupture civil-military relations. When he landed at Islamabad airport on Nov. 20, the military seized his passport.

"I did not craft or write the memo that is currently the cause of controversy," Mr. Haqqani tells me flatly. Nonetheless, he offered his resignation as ambassador to facilitate the inquiry. Shortly afterward, Pakistan's supreme court took up the matter and banned Mr. Haqqani from leaving the country.

Back in the U.S., Adm. Mullen claims to have only a hazy recollection of having received, but not taken seriously, an unsigned memo that did not bear the imprimatur of the Pakistani government. The upshot, as Mr. Haqqani points out, is a Pakistani scandal that "involves a memo written by an American and delivered through an American [retired Gen. Jim Jones], to an American military official who consigned it to the dustbin."

It also bears noting that the central "conspiracy" in Memogate supposedly involves an attempt by civilian agents of Pakistan's government to protect that government from yet another illegal military coup. That didn't stop Pakistan's supreme court from taking up charges of "treason" against Mr. Haqqani that could carry the death penalty. Nor has it prevented elements in Pakistan's media from seeking to convict Mr. Haqqani as a traitor and "American agent."

Such incitements are not idle in the context of Pakistan's violent street politics. Last year saw the assassination in broad daylight of Salmaan Taseer, the governor of Pakistan's largest province, whom media had vilified for criticizing the country's notorious blasphemy laws and championing the cause of a Christian woman sentenced under them. Taseer's assassin—one of his own bodyguards—instantly became a hero in many quarters. Four months later, investigative journalist Saleem Shahzad was abducted, tortured and killed after he exposed al Qaeda's infiltration of the Pakistani Navy. ISI involvement in Shahzad's killing is widely suspected though it was officially denied by a recent commission of inquiry led by a supreme court judge.

These precedents weigh on Mr. Haqqani, but he seems determined to press on. "I lived in the United States and taught in the United States," he says, referring to his time as professor of international relations at Boston University and his stint as ambassador. "But I never sought American citizenship because I wanted to be able to contribute to the process of reform and the idea of civilian supremacy in Pakistan."

This points to the issue at the heart of Mr. Haqqani's—and Pakistan's—predicament: The failure of "the idea of civilian supremacy" to gain both a practical and uncontested grip. Instead, Pakistani politics lives in a kind of halfway-house neatly captured by Mr. Haqqani's halfway-house status as both guest and prisoner—a guest of the country's democratically elected leadership, a prisoner of the military and associated antidemocratic forces that want to make an example of the urbane diplomat.

If anyone is equipped to analyze these dilemmas, it is Mr. Haqqani. His 2005 book, "Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military" drew attention to the Islamist proxies of Pakistan's military that have killed thousands of Pakistanis and destabilized Afghanistan for two decades. "One of the reasons some people in the establishment hate me so much is because of my book. In fact, when I was made ambassador, somebody said to me that until you recant your book, you will never be forgiven by the Pakistani establishment."

He explains that "Pakistan has a long history of military intervention in politics. There were years when the military did not directly intervene but used proxies. Throughout the 1990s, we had four changes of government and forced early elections each time. For example, among the first allegations against Benazir Bhutto"—the former prime minister assassinated by al Qaeda affiliates in 2007—"was that she was somehow going to compromise the country's nuclear program. So, there are elements entrenched in the apparatus of state who are very reluctant to fully trust the elected leaders of the country."

I press him on the invisible pressures on President Asif Ali Zardari's unpopular government. "Soon after I resigned President Zardari fell ill," he notes. "The psychological-warfare machine tried to give it the color of President Zardari fleeing the country. He went [to Dubai] to get treated and then came back." Speaking perhaps as much to reassure himself as to lend some support to Mr. Zardari—who, if he stays in office through the end of his term in 2013, will be the first Pakistani president to do so—Mr. Haqqani adds that "In all psychological warfare, if the targets keep their nerves, then nothing happens."

Indeed Mr. Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani—Mr. Haqqani's other main protector—are both continually fighting for their political survival. For Mr. Gilani, charges of contempt of court could cost him his prime ministership. For Mr. Zardari, longstanding corruption charges still dog him, and his rivals on the Supreme Court could soon strip him of his presidential immunity. If either man is convicted, the government will fall, possibly dooming Mr. Haqqani and his cause.

As ambassador in Washington, Mr. Haqqani was often referred to as "silver-tongued," a man able to communicate effectively with officials of different political persuasions. Cultivating a relationship with a senator based on shared appreciation of a book on, say, tribal warfare, was the kind of thing that came easily to him.

He says he represented Pakistan diligently at a time when U.S.-Pakistani relations were deeply strained. "There is a longstanding culture of grievance in Pakistan," he says. "A lot of Pakistanis feel the U.S. has not always been responsive to Pakistan's geostrategic concerns. The Pakistani national narrative also says that Pakistan has been deserted by the United States many times. And the U.S. has not done enough to try and change that national narrative."

As for the current U.S. administration, he says that it "does not have the human resources right now to fully understand the complexities of Pakistan and engage with them. They don't have the people who understand."

The traditional pattern of U.S.-Pakistan relations has been that American intelligence wants working relations with Pakistani intelligence, and the State Department wants working relations with Pakistan's foreign office. "The U.S. will have to find a balance between their immediate needs and the long-term usefulness of their actions," says Mr. Haqqani. "They always say the civilian government is 'too weak' for them to engage with. But how will the civilian government become strong if, on all major issues, U.S. officials keep running to Pakistan's military leaders for advice and consultation?"

Still, Mr. Haqqani is not about to blame the U.S. for Pakistan's failures to develop into a normal state. The progressive dreams of the country's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, have been "shattered by religious extremism and repeated military interventions in politics." Enunciating his words carefully, he adds: "While I respect the Pakistani armed forces, I certainly do not support the idea of a militarized Pakistan."

Things may yet work out in Mr. Haqqani's favor. The military and its allies may detest him and want to wound his friends in government, but they do not seem prepared to bring the government down, much less formally take the reins of state. Pakistan is still dependent in many ways on the U.S., which is its biggest trading partner and supplier of military resources. Two weeks ago, U.S. Sens. John McCain, Joseph Lieberman and Mark Kirk issued a statement saying they were "increasingly troubled" by the treatment of Mr. Haqqani and were "closely following" his case.

Yet it says something dark about Pakistan that an episode as preposterous as Memogate can all but paralyze the politics of a country already reeling from a faltering economy, sectarian violence and a parlous international situation. The military establishment is still pursuing an arms race with India and helping the Taliban in Afghanistan—and it has been remarkably successful in casting its domestic opponents as agents of the CIA or Indian intelligence. Thus Mr. Haqqani's concern: "Sometimes I wonder if Salmaan Taseer's fate awaits all those of us who stand up for a different vision for Pakistan."

Ms. Sethi is an assistant books editor at the Journal.

[Pranav]

How useful are 'contacts' who say one thing to your face and another behind your back? No rebuttals means you accept the tag.

Contacts would have varying degrees of usefulness. Let's not get locked into a rigid black-or-white mind-set. Be flexible enough to apply the right mix of Saam, Daam, Bhed and Dand to each individual case.

Highly doubtful that INC has the will or vision to do anything of the kind, but that's a different story.

[SSridhar]

LeJ Chief Released from Detention by the Punjab Court

A Pakistani judicial review board on Friday ended the house arrest of Malik Ishaq, the head of the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi who was detained last year after his group was blamed for a string of attacks on the minority Shia community.

The three-member review board headed by Lahore High Court Justice Nasir Saeed set aside the Punjab government's plea that Ishaq's detention should be extended for maintaining law and order in the province.

The law officer of the Punjab Home Department argued that there had been a spike in sectarian violence against Shias since Ishaq was freed from prison last year.

“The government believes that Ishaq's release may create law and order situation in some parts of the province,” said the law officer. Ishaq appeared before the review board and argued against his detention. “I have committed no crime against anyone and my detention amounts to the usurping of my basic rights,” he claimed.

After hearing both sides, the board ordered the ending of Ishaq'a detention. The LeJ chief was released from Lahore's Kot Lakhpat Jail in July last year after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court. He had been imprisoned for 14 years.

On another occasion, when a similar release was ordered by the Review Board of the Punjab High Court (which is also described for obvious reasons as terrorist-pasand), another famous terrorist who goes by the name of Prof. Hafeez Saeed saheb was similarly released ad the board also ordered compensation for the months of detention. And, the Professor saheb, while being detained at home like the LeJ Chief, was never really detained as he had all the access to the external world, used to meet people at will etc. Now, will the Judicial Review Board also order back-dated rewards to the LeJ Chief ?

[Anujan]

^^^
This (old) news comes to mind

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/lej-c ... il/818517/

Malik Ishaq, the chief of the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi who is accused of plotting the 2009 attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, received a monthly stipend from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government in Pakistan’s Punjab province while he was in prison, a media report said Saturday.

Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, who has himself been under a cloud for his alleged links with the Sipah-e-Sahaba terror group, confirmed the disbursement of the stipend to Ishaq. However, he contended the amount was given to Ishaq’s family, and not to him, according to orders of the court.

[pankajs]

SC decision on ‘immunity’ will be respected: Gilani

LAHORE: A day after his dramatic appearance before the Supreme Court after being issued a contempt notice in the National Reconciliation Ordinance case, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani vowed to respect the court’s decision, whatever it may be, on the president’s immunity.

After having pushed pukistan to the brink time to step back and write the letter?

[Satya_anveshi]

Today's Pakistan is far more radicalized than even the 80s. There is only hope for salafists there.No hope for Gentle Giants.

SS garu, Thanks for providing historical nuggets on Paki treatment of people like Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan. Much appreciated as always.
If more salafists are required in the short term, so be it as long as the dust settles down soon and there are fewer roaches to hinder our growth.

At some point I am expecting that the society will get tired of this level of violence and changes begin. I think Bollywood should make one or two movies on KK movement and its little struggle with both white and brown pakis.

[pankajs]

EDITORIAL: Resuming Pak-US ties
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 2012_pg3_1

Not having learned an iota’s worth of wisdom from the mistakes of the past, the powers that be in Pakistan are hell bent on compounding them. Toeing the military’s line, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar has reiterated in her interview with Reuters that disregard to the inviolability of Pakistan borders is unacceptable and also that the US should not push Pakistan to go after the militants or bring them to the Afghan peace process. Ms Khar’s argument seems to have directly come from the GHQ in Rawalpindi as only they know the wisdom behind the so-called policy of strategic depth. On the one hand, we allow the insurgents to have safe havens on our side of the border and launch attacks on the Afghan and NATO forces in Afghanistan from our soil while on the other hand we raise the question of inviolability of our borders as a sovereign country when the US-led NATO forces strike inside our territory against the militants. How can we call for inviolability of our sovereignty when we ourselves fight them through our proxies? The US desperately wants to resume its ties with Pakistan, especially with regard to the reopening of NATO supply routes through Pakistan. Positive voices are coming from the Pakistani side too, as the Parliamentary Committee on National Commission has finalised its recommendations on the rules of re-engagement with the US in the ongoing war on terror. A failure of renewed Pak-US ties seems possible with this attitude that sprouts from our military establishment’s history of following a dual policy in this war. This has the potential to bring continuity in relations to a halt sooner or later.

It is a well known fact that the military establishment sets the foreign policy of the country, informed by the flawed policy of strategic depth. It nurtured the retreating Taliban as its proxies across the Durand Line to have control in Afghanistan and to keep India out of this region. In the aftermath of 9/11, being a US ally in the war on terror, the military had to take action against its proxies but kept its policy of strategic depth intact and played a double game with the US, ignoring the potential threat that the Taliban would pose to Pakistan if they succeed in re-imposing their government in Kabul post-2014. Given their history of non-compliance with all of Pakistan’s wishes, we should not expect much from them. They might even strengthen their counterparts living in Pakistan to spread their hold and ideology across the region. That situation would hurt both the countries and the region would suffer even more.

We need to further understand and admit that the US after making arrangements in Afghanistan would eventually safely leave but if it adopts a cold attitude towards our country, our economic condition would become critical. Its trade prospects would further suffer. Paying hefty installments to the IMF and others would become impossible. There is a need to closely evaluate these factors and dump the policy of strategic depth forever. Remember that with its positive approach in reconstruction of Afghanistan, India’s influence is on the rise there.

There is also a report that some of the US officials have reacted against Pakistan’s decision to impose tariffs and tolls on the NATO supplies, ending years long free service. The question is: why did General (retd) Musharraf provide supply routes and hand over airbases like Shamsi and Shahbaz to the US free of cost? The funds Pakistan is receiving from the US as a part of this war are too little to compensate for the loss the whole exercise has incurred to Pakistan’s economy. When Pakistan closed its NATO supply routes after the Salala attack in November 2011, it is costing the US six times more to send supplies to foreign troops from alternate northern routes. Pakistan has to come clear on all these issues this time. Re-engagement with the US should be based on fair dealing, completely doing away with the strategic depth policy. *

[SSridhar]

This (old) news comes to mind
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/lej-c ... il/818517/

Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, who has himself been under a cloud for his alleged links with the Sipah-e-Sahaba terror group, confirmed the disbursement of the stipend to Ishaq. However, he contended the amount was given to Ishaq’s family, and not to him, according to orders of the court.

Anujan ji, thanks for the confirmation. So, the Lahore High Court cannot be accused of discrimination at least. It favours all terrorists alike.

[Pranav]

Case against alleged blasphemer Aasia Bibi is being funded by some dudes from London -

Qari, according to some of his close friends, was now thinking of not pursuing the case anymore and expressed his desire to some of his friends, only to find himself in a difficult situation when activists of a religious organisation ‘convinced’ him not to change his mind.

“We will chase her through hell … don’t worry about the money, hiring best lawyers,” Salam told The Express Tribune, quoting the son of Khatm-e-Nabuwat’s London chapter’s leader.

The leader’s son flew in to Nankana from London after hearing that Salam might not go to Lahore High Court (LHC) when the review petition against Aasia’s conviction is taken up ...

Salam said Khatm-e-Nabuwat had hired Mustafa Chaudhry as counsel to fight his case in the higher court, and were ready to go to any extent to seek death for Aasia.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/324943/aasi ... ling-back/

[pankajs]

Pakistan to charge $1,000 for every NATO truck: report

There is no proposal from the Federal Board of Revenue to impose a transit fee on ISAF and NATO containers but the government is considering a proposal to allow the NLC to charge a fee for transportation charges and for providing No Objection Certificates, sources privy to the development told The News daily.

So the army-run National Logistics Cell (NLC) collects the fee not the government.

[ArmenT]

Three Germans arrested by Pakistani Police

Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Three German citizens, including a German army colonel, were arrested in a police raid Saturday in the northern Pakistani city of Peshawar, authorities said.
Police official Mian Saeed said the three men had set up an office in the city without the permission of either the Pakistani or the German government.
...
...

[pankajs]

Munna trying to find a new master. Chinese love is insufficient it seems to counterbalance unkil.

Khar off to Russia with love

ISLAMABAD: In a development that signifies a paradigm shift in the country’s decades-old foreign policy, Pakistan is set to formally invite the Russian president to undertake a visit at a time when its relationship with the United States is faltering.

If Dmitry Medvedev accepts the invitation, he will be the first Russian head of state to visit Islamabad.

A foreign office official told The Express Tribune that Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar is expected to visit Moscow in the first half of February to formally extend her country’s invitation to the Russian president for a maiden trip.

The move is part of Pakistan’s efforts to reach out to countries such as Russia in the wake of its strained ties with the US. Relations between Islamabad and Washington have continued to deteriorate since the November 26 Nato airstrikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

That incident not only prompted authorities to shut down key supply route for the western forces stationed in Afghanistan but also initiated a review of the entire relationship with the US. An all-party and bicameral parliamentary panel has already furnished its recommendations to rewrite the terms of engagements with Washington.

The foreign policy review includes recommendations that Pakistan must re-evaluate its relationship with Russia. The two-day envoys conference attended by ambassadors from select capitals has proposed measures to upgrade ties with Moscow in an attempt to reduce reliance on the US.

“There was a consensus that we should take our relationship with Russia to the next level,” said a foreign office official.

It is believed that China is also quietly pushing Pakistan and Russia to move beyond their bitter past and write a new chapter in their ties in view of the evolving regional and international situation.

Islamabad and Moscow remained bitter enemies in the 1980s when Pakistan, along with western countries, backed the so-called holy warriors, or ‘mujahideen’, fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan. But in recent years the two countries have attempted to move beyond that phase of their relationship.

In an unprecedented statement following the Nato attacks on Pakistani check posts last year, Russia publicly denounced the incident, emphasising that a nation’s sovereignty should always be upheld, even when hunting ‘terrorists’.

In May last year, President Asif Zardari undertook a historic visit to Moscow, the first official trip by any head of state from Pakistan in 37 years. Recently, a top Russian military commander also paid a rare visit to Pakistan. The visit by Colonel General Alexander Postnikov, Commander -in-Chief Russian Ground Forces, was the first by any senior military official from the former Soviet Union in recent years. The significance of the visit can be judged from the fact that the Russian general was given a guard of honour and full protocol on his arrival at the GHQ.

Why is China trying to share its favorite whore with the Russians? Perhaps the cost-benefit analysis does not paint a happy picture. The Chinese do not see themselves as replacing amreeka, given the time, energy and money required to keep the whore satisfied.

[Philip]

Is the houri going to perform the "dance of the seven veils" for Putin and Medvedev?! Russia interacting with Pak will give it a front seat into watching Pak's duplicity and strategy for controlling Afghanistan.The Bear won't be fooled by the Pakis antics.It also shows that China is losing some control over the Paki establishment,where the fundoos and beardies are taking over.

[pankajs]

The bear already know the pakis from their prior AfPak engagement. Also, look at this news in the context of Kayani's recent visit to China.

[anupmisra]

In the US edition of the Wall St. Journal. From who I presume is Najam Sethi's daughter.

That's her alright. Her daddy managed to get her an internship of some sort with WSJ. I think she also spent a couple of summers interning with an Indian newspaper (I forget the name). She is turning out to be quite a pseudo-western oriented liberal in the esteemed footsteps of Khar, Sherry and Pinky. Maybe even working on her green card.

[member_22286]

In the US edition of the Wall St. Journal. From who I presume is Najam Sethi's daughter.

That's her alright. Her daddy managed to get her an internship of some sort with WSJ. I think she also spent a couple of summers interning with an Indian newspaper (I forget the name). She is turning out to be quite a pseudo-western oriented liberal in the esteemed footsteps of Khar, Sherry and Pinky. Maybe even working on her green card.

She did an internship with Indian express If I remember correctly Shekar Gupta and Najam sethi have some sort of friendship

[Aditya_V]

The bear already know the pakis from their prior AfPak engagement. Also, look at this news in the context of Kayani's recent visit to China.

And more recently support of Chechenya and Islamic armies in Bosnia and Kosovo.

[sum]

The bear already know the pakis from their prior AfPak engagement. Also, look at this news in the context of Kayani's recent visit to China.

True...the bear hardly needs any introduction to Paki perifidy and if the "Ghost wars" is to be believed, the bear also gave back quite a lot of tough love to the Pakis.

A USSR KGB veteran like Putin will know each and every perfidious act the TSPians committed against Russia till the 90s and even now in Chechnya etc.

[abhishek_sharma]

If US-China and US-Vietnam can make up after their wars, then maybe Pakis and Russians can enter a marriage of convenience against Khan.

[shiv]

If US-China and US-Vietnam can make up after their wars, then maybe Pakis and Russians can enter a marriage of convenience against Khan.

Abhishek - Pakistan is too dysfunctional a state to actually do anything like that. No one really has full control over most of what is happening there.

[sum]

Three Germans arrested by Pakistani Police

Islamabad, Pakistan (CNN) -- Three German citizens, including a German army colonel, were arrested in a police raid Saturday in the northern Pakistani city of Peshawar, authorities said.
Police official Mian Saeed said the three men had set up an office in the city without the permission of either the Pakistani or the German government.
...
...

Pre-emptive strike by ISI on a BND covert unit involved with the good/bad taliban because they were deviating from the Paki approved Taliban reconciliation script?

[shyamd]

RT @akchishti: FC regular pay is Rs.8-9000/month while TTP offers Rs.18000-20000 plus guarantee an orgy in heaven - who would you choose?

[pankajs]

Abhishek - Pakistan is too dysfunctional a state to actually do anything like that. No one really has full control over most of what is happening there.

Exactly the reason why the Chinese do not want the central role in pukistan. They want other to wade into that muck and stabilize the situation. They want to keep their hands clean and sing the taller, deeper, etc song.

[Altair]

There is a khanspeeracy theory doing rounds that carving Baluchistan out of Iran and Pakistan being the reason for the buildup in Persian gulf and Pakistan. Wonder if it carries any substance.

[Anujan]

Maybe Pak wants arms from China and Russia to make sure some of those RADARs/Planes work in case there is a skirmish with Unkil. Khar's trip to Russia should be seen in this light.

[CRamS]

TSP RAPE in Indian mufti, bakara dottie on her beloved TSP. No mention of the only issue of importance to India: pigLeTs.

[CRamS]

There is a khanspeeracy theory doing rounds that carving Baluchistan out of Iran and Pakistan being the reason for the buildup in Persian gulf and Pakistan. Wonder if it carries any substance.

I doubt it, US is not about to sell TSP Pakijabis down the Indus river that badly. There is still a lot of love between them and common interests in containing us SDREs. Reason being just as India will collapse should J&K be dismembered any further, especially of the valley Muslims have their way, likewise, TSP will not be able to withstand another vivisection of their so called "country". Pakijabis will loose their potency against us SDREs should that happen, and its in nobody's interests: USA, China, Pakijabis, and last but not the least, non-Indian "South Asian" "secularists" among the Indian ruling elite. Who among these groups will savor Hindu simpletons like Baba Ramdev, Anna Hazare, Sri Sri Ravishankar etc as the epitome of Indian civilization?