Why is the U.S. showering billions on these two-faced Islamic supremacists? "Anti-Americanism rife in Pakistan army institution: Wikileaks," by Zeeshan Haider for Reuters, May 25 (thanks to JCB):
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Officers received training biased against the United States at a prestigious Pakistan army institution, according to Wikileaks, underscoring concern that anti-Americanism in the country's powerful military is growing amid strains with Washington.A U.S. diplomatic cable said the former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, Anne Patterson, found officers at the National Defense University (NDU) were "naive and biased" against the United States, a key ally which gives Pakistan billions of dollars of aid to help fight Islamist militants.
Fears the military could be harboring militant sympathizers have grown since U.S. forces found and killed Osama bin Laden this month in a Pakistani garrison town, where the al Qaeda leader had probably lived for several years.
Pakistan's military also controls the country's nuclear arms, and a series of attacks against military installations has heightened fears about the safety of those weapons.
"The elite of this crop of colonels and brigadiers are receiving biased NDU training with no chance to hear alternative views of the U.S.," the Wikileaks cable, which was published in the Dawn newspaper, quoted Patterson as saying. [...]
Anti-Americanism runs high among many of Pakistan's mainly Muslim people but it has deepened after bin Laden's killing in a secret U.S. raid which many Pakistanis see as breach of sovereignty. [...]
Dawn said dozens of cables from U.S. embassies around the world also showed that the United States continued to intensely monitor Pakistan's nuclear and missiles programs. [...]
"We will protect these weapons from dangers from foreigners," Ehsanullah Ehsan, a spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban told Reuters by telephone from an undisclosed location.
Many Pakistanis believe the United States and India would like to confiscate their nuclear weapons.
Sounds like a good idea.
... underscoring concern that anti-Americanism in (Pakistan's ) powerful military is growing amid strains with Washington.
We'll see if the communist Chinese are as naive as America is in dealing with Pak. Some how I doubt it.
But it's a given now that China will emerge as Pak's primary hegemonic patron. I wonder how China's ruling elite viewed Osama bin Laden in particular and now views the Global Jihad in general.
"We'll see if the communist Chinese are as naive as America is in dealing with Pak. Some how I doubt it."
I agree with you. China is a potent enemy of the US, but also an important trading partner. Remember the saying: "If I owe you a thousand dollars, I'm in trouble. But, if I owe you a million dollars, you're in trouble."
Most likely, China sees Pakistan as an important hedge against both the US and India. Pakistan sees China in exactly the same way. Hence, the relationship between the two is likely to remain low-key in the near future. The Chinese have problems with the Muslims in China, and most likely are aware of the long-term risk of dealing with, or being a neighbor of, Pakistan.
My guess is, Pakistan has already produced, and hidden, several suitcase-sized nuclear devices, and may have claimed to have already smuggled them into the US. Thus, a US decision to peremptorily take over the visible Pakistani nuclear devices will entail a great deal of risk. The same logic exists for India.
My guess is, overall, it would be better to simply disengage from Pakistan, withdraw aid, and leave them to their own devices. It is in the interests of even an Islamist government to not push its neighbors too far. If someone is going to snatch the nuclear devices from Pakistan, let it be India. They are direct neighbors, and have much more at stake in making clear-headed decisions.
Most likely, China sees Pakistan as an important hedge against both the US and India. Pakistan sees China in exactly the same way.
Stuck in their obsolescent Cold War world view, the communists who run China imagine that we're in Pakistan to take imperialist treasures from that hell-hole region.
So much for the racist theory that Chinese are geniuses.
What good is influence if it only carries cost and risk?
You may be right about the suitcase bombs, albeit I've read that such devices, if they exist, would comprise a volume about the size of a pickup truck bed.
Not that that's any comfort.
"Many Pakistanis believe the United States and India would like to confiscate their nuclear weapons."
That would be just fine by me. A dream scenario is that India someday takes over and incorporates Pakistan as northern India. One less Muslim state with Nuclear weapons would be great - but no one need worry this could happen with our Islamic infiltrator in the White House.
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan is, in effect, practicing an extortion racket against the West.
Pakistan is virtually saying: 'if you don't give us more money, we will make things more difficult for you.'
And the West plays along with Pakistan's extortion. The top priorities of Pakistan's ruling elite are: money and Islam. And we in the West are subsidising those Pakistan priorities, which involve us in assisting Pakistan's active support for Islamic jihad, and even for continuing mass immigration of Pakistan's anti-American Muslims to the West, where many live on state welfare, and proselytize for Islam, and against the West's Judeo-Christian values.
Such is the West's politically suicidal policy.
"If someone is going to snatch the nuclear devices from Pakistan, let it be India."
For all intents and purposes, the US is directly responsible for Pakistan's nuclear capability. Tacitly agreeing to look the other was quid-pro-quo for Pakistani help against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. Given the times, all this is understandable.
If however, the US walks away at this point, without cleaning up, 9/11 will repeat itself.
The jihadi elements in the Pakistani Military live in an alternate reality and have no compunctions about using the suitcases you speak of.
To them it does not matter if Pakistan turns to a glass floored parking lot.
. A dream scenario is that India someday takes over and incorporates Pakistan as northern India.
Yeah, but that dream has a scene where the Hindus running India would want to take on 175 million more Moslems than the big number they're already stuck with.
Pakistan: Anti-Americanism rife in military
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Is anyone here shocked? I didn't think so.
More:
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Officers received training biased against the United States at a prestigious Pakistan army institution...
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Ah—so the anti-Americanism is not just private opinion, but actually *part of the curriculum*.
And that "prestigious Pakistan army institution"—would that be the one less than a mile from where Osama bin Laden was holed up in his well-stocked hideaway? Seems likely.
More:
A U.S. diplomatic cable said the former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, Anne Patterson, found officers at the National Defense University (NDU) were "naive and biased" against the United States, a key ally which gives Pakistan billions of dollars of aid to help fight Islamist militants.
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It's only "naive and biased" if you are thinking logically and objectively. If you are thinking "Islamically", it is certainly expected.
More:
Fears the military could be harboring militant sympathizers have grown since U.S. forces found and killed Osama bin Laden this month in a Pakistani garrison town, where the al Qaeda leader had probably lived for several years.
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This should probably be phrased "even more militant sympathizers"...
More:
Anti-Americanism runs high among many of Pakistan's mainly Muslim people but it has deepened after bin Laden's killing in a secret U.S. raid which many Pakistanis see as breach of sovereignty.
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This assumes that Pakistan's main issue with our taking out bin Laden was one of sovereignty—which might be a minor sore point, but no more.
But what if the main issue is that a great many Pakistanis—including many in the military—actually supported bin Laden and agreed with giving the murderous Jihadist sanctuary?
This is a much more fundamental issue, and one that seems most likely...
"If however, the US walks away at this point, without cleaning up, 9/11 will repeat itself."
Well, you have a point. The US allied itself with a Pakistan of questionable governance for strategic cold war purposes.
However, the question is, what is the best course of action at this point? One possible scenario is for the US, perhaps in alliance with India, to have a grand raid, snatch all the Pakistani nuclear weapons they knew about, and destroy the facilities which could make more.
That's not such a bad idea, if the US could just get out then, and let things develop by themselves. The US has a bad habit of acting under the assumption that it is obligated to install a democratic, liberal government in every country in which it takes a military action. That is costly in money, and expensive in the lives of our most valuable soldiers.
I think your observation definitely has merit.
"One possible scenario is for the US, perhaps in alliance with India, to have a grand raid, snatch all the Pakistani nuclear weapons they knew about, and destroy the facilities which could make more."
For India, I would have one more objective - wrestling back areas of Jammu And Kashmir that are under illegal Pakistani control. The Karakorum Highway through these areas is the umbilical cord that joins Pakistan to China. The chord must be cut for strategic reasons, besides - these areas are illegally occupied by Pakistan.
"Appeasement is feeding the crocodile with the hope that it wont eat you."
I heard that somewhere.
The Chinese insist on remaining an ideological and spiritual colony of 19th century Germany, in which only Marxism and jackboot nationalism matter. Frankly, as someone who is kin to them and reads their language, I'm of the mind that they love having us by the financial wailuan, although they may not recognize their own vulnerability by holding so much of our unpayable debt. They are also very, very bitter that they ceased to be the "Bright Red Sun" for international "Progressive forces" after their 6/4/89 "suppression of counterrevolution"--which they honestly expected would be justified, if not praised, by an international army of their sympathizers in world media.
My guess is that China's alliance with Pakistan and influence in the Central Asian Stans will ultimately backfire. Few ideologies are as mutually incompatible as Marxism mixed with the highly chauvinistic nationalism of a pork-loving people and Islam. Sooner or later, the Dar-ul-Islam will become more aware of the treatment of its co-religionists under Chinese Communist rule. Add to this, Pakistan seems to be sinking deeper and deeper into pathology by the day, and will probably pierce the Chinese hand that leans on it, just as it has already pierced ours.
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last."
Sir Winston Churchill
British politician (1874 - 1965)
It comes back to Churchill again.
Simple facts which most Americans and their Presidents over the years delibrately ignored and will eventually pay for are as follows :-
(1) Pakistan is a 100% Islamic state formed for Muslims only in 1947.
(2) Because of (1) above , Saudi Arabia has been giving Pakistan billions of US dollars as "Islamic" aid since the formation of oil-cartel OPEC in 1973.
(3) Pakistan has been getting additional aid of millions of US dollars from USA since 1960 for showing itself as an anti-communist state.
(4) Since the defeat of the Soviets in Afganistan , under the joint leadership of Osama Bin Laden and CIA , USA has pampered Pakistan by giving further aid !
(5) Since 9/11 Pakistan is getting additional millions of US dollar military aid for giving safe road routes to US,British & NATO to move supplies to its forces in Afganistan
SO DURING THE LAST 60 YEARS PAKISTAN HAS RECEIVED TRILLIONS OF US DOLLARS AID FROM THE SAUDIS, AMERICANS AND THE BRITISH GOVERNMENTS AND STILL RECEIVES THE SAME IN BILLIONS !
In return what has PAKISTAN done ? Read the following details :-
(1) Allowed Taliban to stay put in Pakistan and grow from strength to strength !
(2) Allowed Al-Quaida to use Pakistan's border area with Afganistan as a safe heaven !
(3) Received Nuclear Bomb making knowledge and help from China and North Korea !
(4) Passed on that knowledge to Iran !
AREN'T THE ABOVE FACTS TRUE ? WASN'T AMERICA , THRU ITS CIA , AWARE OF THOSE FACTS OVER THE YEARS ? WHY WAS USA NOT TRYING TO GET RID OF THE PAKISTANI ARMY GENERALS WHO HAVE BEEN RUNNING PAKISTANI GOVERNMENT FOR THE LAST 50 YEARS AND ENCOURAGE DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED PEOPLE'S GOVERNMENT IN PAKISTAN ? WHY EVEN NOW USA BENDS BEFORE PAKISTAN WHEN DEALING WITH THE ISSUE OF INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM ?