Sacrifices disregarded
LAST month’s mindless Nato attack on Pakistani posts confirmed the perception that the US always shoots first and asks questions later.
It is hardly surprising that Pakistan refused to be a part of the investigation, whose results were announced yesterday, considering that probes conducted after two attacks in 2008 and 2010 in the tribal agencies had yielded nothing.
According to Pakistan, the US disregarded standard operating procedures for operations close to the border with Afghanistan and provided the wrong coordinates. The Afghan intelligence should also be taken to task for apparently misleading the coalition troops.
It is a pity that the coalition’s operational intelligence seems to be influenced by those who are still stuck in the past, although the situation has changed. Any attack in Afghanistan is immediately followed by a knee-jerk reaction of blaming Pakistan.
The leadership role of the US unfortunately comes with the burden of responsibility. One cannot blame tactical failures and lack of operational progress on an ally that is more or less dependent on the US.
For its part Pakistan does need to stop providing relief to the Haqqani network within its borders. But even if North Waziristan is cleared of militants, coalition difficulties in Afghanistan will not come to an end. The US has withdrawn forces from Helmand and Kandahar and has shifted its presence to the eastern provinces that border the tribal agency of North Waziristan.
This manoeuvre should have been done much earlier to help matters. In response to the US ‘mantra’ to do more Pakistan stated that the US was not prepared to conduct reciprocal operations across the North Waziristan border in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the insurgent groups in Nuristan and Kunar are thriving since there is no presence of coalition troops in those provinces. These groups continue to conduct an insurgency inside Pakistan.
It is must be noted at this point that although one often hears statements regarding the presence of terrorist safe havens in Pakistan it is hardly ever mentioned that these areas have not been under the writ of the government.
Ultimately no one has benefited from the situation. Pakistan is reviewing its relationship with the Americans. With three years left in the region, the time has come for the US to make some fundamental choices in South Asia.
Will the ragtag Afghan National Army with its share of deserters and addicts be able to take control? Pakistan has already paid a gruesome price for taking in three million Afghan refugees during the Soviet invasion. The influx of refugees has been accompanied by the spread of the heroin culture, guns and smuggling in the country. It can no longer afford to host another stream of refugees from across the border.
Back in the US, political support for military efforts in Afghanistan is waning and every branch of the US government is facing a very real threat of sharp budget cuts.
For the people of Pakistan, the billions of dollars lavished on their country in the form of American aid does not translate into a free pass to disregard their sovereignty and for America to conduct drone strikes in the northwest or have its CIA agents roaming around the country.
Pakistan’s response to last month’s Nato incursion was swift and effective, making it obvious that it can only be pushed so far, and time will tell what the results of the recently concluded probe will lead to. However, at this point one must consider the options available to move forward.
The US can cut aid to Pakistan in which case it might not be able to use Pakistani airspace for drone strikes in North Waziristan, nor will it be able to move supplies through Pakistan to Afghanistan. This then is not likely on a large scale as the US still needs Pakistan to deliver the endgame in Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Pakistanis are saying that enough is enough. Thus, for this relationship to continue the US will have to appease the Pakistani population. Also a revised set of rules will set the tone between the two countries until 2014.
Perhaps a recognition of the sacrifices borne by Pakistan is too much to ask for. Nevertheless, the US needs to understand that American troops will return to their homes, but that the Pakistani nation has been shaken and transformed forever with death and destruction becoming a daily reality.
The writer has a Master’s degree in conflict resolution from the Monterey Institute of International Studies, US.