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High Level US team lead by Clinton Visiting Pakistan

The reason why such a huge contingent came this time - and as being discussed on the TV here in the US is that- this is a come to jesus moment for Pakistan. The US brought along CIA chief too_ with tons of evidence showing ISI involvment and location evidence of safe havens. They( TV) discussed that showing the evidence to the world will embarass pakistan and holds no diplomatic vaule i.e. no need to flame the situation by embarassing pakistan. But showing evidence to Pakistan privately has a better effect because Pakistan see's that US has lots of verifible evidence on hand.
Bunch of paranoid conspiracy theories and speculation.

The US contingent is meant to represent all major institutions involved in Afghanistan -

1. The State Department
2. Military
3. CIA

Given that US-Pakistan intelligence sharing and cooperation is one of the issues on which the two sides can reach agreement on, the presence of Petraeus was necessary. The rest of the speculation is just unsubstantiated nonsense.
 
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i have no confusion, i was replying to anxious post, in which u wanted to go to WW3 so hurriedly, i dont know why war always seems to be the only solution to u people...

your 80 year old 'peace activists', behind whom the entire country rallies, talk about getting ready for and going to war with Pakistan and we are the warmonger, ulta choor.........
 
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U-turn?: Convince Taliban to talk, US asks Pakistan

http://i1.tribune.com.pk/wp-content...inaRabbaniphotoafp-1319233538-800-640x480.jpg
‘MOTHER-IN-LAW’ IN TOWN: Hillary Clinton with Hina Rabbani Khar ahead of their joint press conference in Islamabad.

ISLAMABAD: After months of belligerent rhetoric, the US is now willing to hold talks with the Afghan Taliban – and is looking at Pakistan as its go-between.

Speaking at a flurry of events on Friday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she had asked Pakistan to “encourage the Taliban to enter negotiations in good faith.” These talks would also involve the Haqqani network, a move which speaks volumes for the US’ urgency to end the decade-old conflict in the war-torn country.

In apparent diplomatic double-speak, however, Clinton also insisted that Pakistan take action within “days and weeks” to dismantle alleged terrorist sanctuaries on its soil, warning that a failure to do so would have devastating consequences for all concerned. “We should be able to agree that for far too long extremists have been able to operate here in Pakistan and from Pakistani soil,” she said.

“It’s like that old story: you can’t keep snakes in your backyard and expect them only to bite your neighbours … eventually those snakes are going to turn on whoever has them in the backyard,” Clinton added.

Clinton’s requests for Pakistan to act as an intermediary were the first time the US had formally and publicly called for such action, and appear to reflect the Obama administration’s strong belief that Pakistan still holds significant sway over the Afghan Taliban. The secretary of state urged Pakistan to use its contacts with the “Pakistani Taliban, the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqanis and the other terrorist groups and try to get them into the peace process, but if that fails, to prevent them from committing more violence.”

Clinton has outlined three conditions for talks with the militants: they must lay down arms, abide by the Afghan constitution and respect basic human rights, especially women’s rights. On this latter point Clinton spoke at some length.

Despite reapplying pressure on Pakistan over alleged safe havens in North Waziristan, Clinton admitted, as had been earlier reported, that the US had already held a meeting with representatives from the Haqqani network, which was arranged through the ISI. “It was Pakistan who delivered the contact person,” Clinton said.

However, the Secretary of State stressed that the talks could not be termed a negotiation: “We’ve had one preliminary meeting just to see if they would show up.” It is believed the meeting took place during the summer, well before the attacks mounted by the insurgent group against US troops stationed in Afghanistan.

Clinton, who led a high-powered US delegation that includes CIA Director David Petraeus and the new Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, held extensive talks with Pakistan’s top civil and military leadership. It was unusual for such senior civil, military and intelligence officials to undertake a joint trip to Pakistan, and the Secretary of State said this reflected the urgency and the importance of working through the many challenges that the countries face.

Asked whether Pakistan and the US had reached an understanding on the Haqqani network, Clinton said there are options other than a military clampdown. Although she said that Pakistan should not “allow them (the Haqqanis) across the border into Afghanistan,” the Secretary of State emphasised that the US was “on the same page with (Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez) Kayani.”

Clinton also admitted that the US has no evidence of direct ISI involvement in the attack on the US Embassy in Kabul last month, as was earlier claimed by the US’ then top military man Admiral Mike Mullen. She also agreed that every intelligence agency has contacts with unsavory characters as it is part of their job.

The secretary of state went on to say that, at one point, Washington had considered unilateral action inside Pakistan. Clinton imagined a scenario in which more US personnel had lost their lives at the hands of the Haqqanis. Sentiments would have run high, she explained, but “boots on the ground was never a serious option.”

Foreign Minister Khar, who attended the high-level talks and held separate meeting with Clinton, acknowledged the presence of safe havens of terrorists in the tribal areas. “Do safe havens exist? Yes, they do exist – on both sides. Do we need to cooperate? Yes. We can cooperate more and achieve better results,” she added.

Clinton also highlighted the importance of trade between the two countries, having met President Asif Zardari and discussed economic cooperation. She added that the gas pipeline from Turkemenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan “is a good thing and we endorse it; it will bring prosperity to the region,” while urging caution over proposed cooperation with Iran, a “difficult and a dangerous” neighbour for Pakistan in her view.

Later Clinton interacted with Pakistani civil society leaders at a townhall style forum where she was confronted with tough questions. One of the female participants likened the United States to an unsatisfied mother-in-law.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 22nd, 2011.

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US met Haqqani network: Clinton

ISLAMABAD: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday admitted the United States held one exploratory meeting with the Haqqani network, which an official said took place before a series of massive attacks.

“In fact, the Pakistani government officials helped to facilitate such a meeting,” Clinton told a roundtable with television journalists watched by the US travelling media.

A US official said the Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI) had arranged for the meeting with the group that took place “in the summer”, before two symbolic anti-American attacks in Afghanistan.

Following two days of talks in Afghanistan and Pakistan designed to hasten an end to the 10-year war Clinton said that “we do not see any contradiction” between fighting and talking.

“And we want more coordination between the United States, Pakistan and Afghanistan for what must be, with respect to the conflict, an Afghan-led effort,” the chief US diplomat said.

“We believe that there is now an opportunity for us to begin talking, but there is no guarantee that the talking will result in anything that will move us toward a peaceful resolution,” Clinton said.

“We are going to continue fighting where necessary to protect our interests, and so are the Pakistani military because you cannot allow terrorists to gain ground,” she said.

“But we are also open to talking. We have reached out to the Taliban, we have reached out to the Haqqani network to test their willingness and their sincerity,” she said.

“And we’re now working among us – Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United States – to try to put together a process that would sequence us toward an actual negotiation,” she said.

But referring to the meeting with the Haqqani network, she said “we’re not in any kind of negotiations. We’ve had one preliminary meeting just to see if they would show up.”

A State Department official said later the meeting occurred in the summer before a truck bombing wounded 77 Americans on a US base and a 19-hour siege of the US embassy in Kabul, both in September and both blamed on the Haqqanis.

“We have had a lot of informal straws in the wind. It was one meeting. It was in summer,” the official said.

“We had it because ISI asked us to have it, and the Afghans also knew about it and our message was very clear: ‘the door is open to those who can meet these red lines, and those who want to keep fighting us… we are prepared for that fight.”
 
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US-Pakistan committed to continued partnership

ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday underscored the importance of enhanced consultations between the Pakistan and the United States on the basis of mutual respect, sovereignty and interests while talking to the US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at the Aiwan-e-Sadr on Friday.

Clinton who is on a two day visit of Pakistan at the head of a high-level delegation, met with the President in a one on one and in a delegation meeting.

During one-on-one and the delegation level meeting, Clinton discussed a host of issues relating to Pak-US relations, fight against militancy, regional situation with particular reference to the situation obtaining in Afghanistan.

Zardari said that public criticism of Pakistan’s role undermines its common struggle against militancy in the region.

The President said that “our people and the leadership is among the first ones to fully realize and comprehend the threat posed by violent mindset which is bred on the premises of deprivation and fuelled by sense of inequality.”

Zardari listed the innumerable human sacrifices rendered by Pakistan in fight against militancy and extremism.

He said 30,000 innocent civilians along with 5,000 military and police officers laid their lives for the cause of securing their lands from the clutches of militant mind-set.

Clinton appreciated Pakistan’s contribution in promoting reconciliation. She said that US administration desired continued partnership with Pakistan.

She agreed with the President’s strong emphasis on promoting trade rather than aid as the vehicle for development cooperation and assured that the US administration was working to facilitate enhanced market access for Pakistani products.


Discussing situation in Afghanistan, the President reiterated that Pakistan supports all efforts for regional peace, prosperity and connectivity, based on existing realities of the region.

The President said Pakistan, being an immediate neighbour of Afghanistan had an abiding interest in peace, stability, security and prosperity of Afghanistan and will continue to support every effort in this regard.

Zardai said Pakistan supports Afghan-led and Afghan owned reconciliation process.

Clinton also appreciated the economic reform initiatives taken by Pakistan which involved making difficult decisions and tough choices.

Affirming US continued support for the democracy in Pakistan, she also applauded unanimous resolution adopted by All Parties Conference recently.
 
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The secretary of state urged Pakistan to use its contacts with the “Pakistani Taliban, the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqanis and the other terrorist groups and try to get them into the peace process, but if that fails, to prevent them from committing more violence.”[/COLOR][/B]


They are not all the same. TTP is a terrorist organization having no links with Pakistan. Afghan taliban and haqqanis are one. Afghan taliban fight against occupied forces in their country, whereas TTP is involved in terrorist activities.

By clubbing them all together, and then URGING Pakistan to use its 'contacts' to persuade ALL 'terrorists', US is implying that Pakistan has contacts with terrorists which is untrue. World needs to understand difference between a terrorist and freedom fighter.

Clinton has outlined three conditions for talks with the militants: they must lay down arms, abide by the Afghan constitution and respect basic human rights, especially women’s rights. On this latter point Clinton spoke at some length.

These talks are headed towards failure.
 
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Clinton has outlined three conditions for talks with the militants: they must lay down arms, abide by the Afghan constitution and respect basic human rights, especially women’s rights. On this latter point Clinton spoke at some length.

Any civilised country would look at these pre conditions as a must. The Constitution of a country is above all.
 
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U-turn?: Convince Taliban to talk, US asks Pakistan
By Kamran Yousaf / Munizae Jahangir
Published: October 22, 2011

‘MOTHER-IN-LAW’ IN TOWN: Hillary Clinton with Hina Rabbani Khar ahead of their joint press conference in Islamabad. PHOTO: AFP
ISLAMABAD:
After months of belligerent rhetoric, the US is now willing to hold talks with the Afghan Taliban – and is looking at Pakistan as its go-between.
Speaking at a flurry of events on Friday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she had asked Pakistan to “encourage the Taliban to enter negotiations in good faith.” These talks would also involve the Haqqani network, a move which speaks volumes for the US’ urgency to end the decade-old conflict in the war-torn country.
(Read: A middle ground must be found)
In apparent diplomatic double-speak, however, Clinton also insisted that Pakistan take action within “days and weeks” to dismantle alleged terrorist sanctuaries on its soil, warning that a failure to do so would have devastating consequences for all concerned. “We should be able to agree that for far too long extremists have been able to operate here in Pakistan and from Pakistani soil,” she said.
“It’s like that old story: you can’t keep snakes in your backyard and expect them only to bite your neighbours … eventually those snakes are going to turn on whoever has them in the backyard,” Clinton added.
Clinton’s requests for Pakistan to act as an intermediary were the first time the US had formally and publicly called for such action, and appear to reflect the Obama administration’s strong belief that Pakistan still holds significant sway over the Afghan Taliban. The secretary of state urged Pakistan to use its contacts with the “Pakistani Taliban, the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqanis and the other terrorist groups and try to get them into the peace process, but if that fails, to prevent them from committing more violence.”
Clinton has outlined three conditions for talks with the militants: they must lay down arms, abide by the Afghan constitution and respect basic human rights, especially women’s rights. On this latter point Clinton spoke at some length.
Despite reapplying pressure on Pakistan over alleged safe havens in North Waziristan, Clinton admitted, as had been earlier reported, that the US had already held a meeting with representatives from the Haqqani network, which was arranged through the ISI. “It was Pakistan who delivered the contact person,” Clinton said.
(Read: US met Haqqani network – Clinton)
However, the Secretary of State stressed that the talks could not be termed a negotiation: “We’ve had one preliminary meeting just to see if they would show up.” It is believed the meeting took place during the summer, well before the attacks mounted by the insurgent group against US troops stationed in Afghanistan.
Clinton, who led a high-powered US delegation that includes CIA Director David Petraeus and the new Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, held extensive talks with Pakistan’s top civil and military leadership. It was unusual for such senior civil, military and intelligence officials to undertake a joint trip to Pakistan, and the Secretary of State said this reflected the urgency and the importance of working through the many challenges that the countries face.
(Read: ‘Clear’ on both ends: US talks war, Pakistan preaches peace)
Asked whether Pakistan and the US had reached an understanding on the Haqqani network, Clinton said there are options other than a military clampdown. Although she said that Pakistan should not “allow them (the Haqqanis) across the border into Afghanistan,” the Secretary of State emphasised that the US was “on the same page with (Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez) Kayani.”
Clinton also admitted that the US has no evidence of direct ISI involvement in the attack on the US Embassy in Kabul last month, as was earlier claimed by the US’ then top military man Admiral Mike Mullen. She also agreed that every intelligence agency has contacts with unsavory characters as it is part of their job.
(Read: Attack in Kabul and beyond)
The secretary of state went on to say that, at one point, Washington had considered unilateral action inside Pakistan. Clinton imagined a scenario in which more US personnel had lost their lives at the hands of the Haqqanis. Sentiments would have run high, she explained, but “boots on the ground was never a serious option.”
Foreign Minister Khar, who attended the high-level talks and held separate meeting with Clinton, acknowledged the presence of safe havens of terrorists in the tribal areas. “Do safe havens exist? Yes, they do exist – on both sides. Do we need to cooperate? Yes. We can cooperate more and achieve better results,” she added.
Clinton also highlighted the importance of trade between the two countries, having met President Asif Zardari and discussed economic cooperation. She added that the gas pipeline from Turkemenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan “is a good thing and we endorse it; it will bring prosperity to the region,” while urging caution over proposed cooperation with Iran, a “difficult and a dangerous” neighbour for Pakistan in her view.
Later Clinton interacted with Pakistani civil society leaders at a townhall style forum where she was confronted with tough questions. One of the female participants likened the United States to an unsatisfied mother-in-law.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 22nd, 2011.
 
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Any civilised country would look at these pre conditions as a must. The Constitution of a country is above all.

Dude..I agree with your views, but I am also a realist. Afghanistan is a different society. We cannot talk bookishly and expect every country to fall within perimeters. This is precisely why US has hopelessly failed to achieve what it wanted to achieve in Afghanistan.

If you look at other side`s perspective, they say, "no talks until your soldiers leave our country". Now, again bookishly speaking for the other side, I`d say this demand is pretty justifiable as well. Why are you in someone else`s country and expecting them not to retaliate?

Problems in Afghanistan will not be solved if we keep on talking theory and what books say. At some point world has to take into account Afghan society`s values, tradition and culture. Negotiations will never go successful, if coalition forces come with guns to talking table but expect freedom fighters to come to table without their guns.

In order to achieve any sustainable long term solution, BOTH sides have to lay down weapons against each other.
 
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Diplomacy as deception

Much has been said and written about the visit of US Secretary of State who descended on Islamabad last week with top intelligence and army officials to create further confusion regarding their strategy in the region. On the one hand, Ms Clinton expressed a willingness to give peace a chance by supporting an Afghan-led reconciliation process and sought Pakistan's help in bringing Taliban militants to the negotiating table, and on the other, she gave a sort of deadline to Pakistan to act against the militants in North Waziristan that the US now holds responsible for its woes in Afghanistan. What is one to make of this obvious contradiction? You can either talk to the militants or bomb them. Do the mixed signals from the US show that the global bully is confused about what next to do in the region? Or is it deliberately trying to confuse us?

Obviously, Ms Clinton's hypocritical and hollow words about engaging with the Afghan resistance in a dialogue mean nothing. After all, any meaningful dialogue is a two-sided affair and can only proceed in an environment of give and take. Bribing individuals to switch sides and accept the US-led imperialist project in Afghanistan cannot be called a dialogue and it is unlikely to produce any results. Reconciliation with those resisting foreign occupation would involve a re-evaluation of US objectives in Afghanistan, but there are no signs to suggest that the US is willing to do that. To its initial goals of decimating Al-Qaeda and stopping Afghanistan from becoming a sanctuary for future terrorist attacks, the US has added a few more, as it routinely does to further its actual undeclared agenda.

The US now feels responsible for safeguarding the Afghan Constitution manufactured by puppets installed by it and, of course, it is very concerned about the future of minorities and women in the country. It wants a permanent military presence in Afghanistan and wants India to become a junior partner in its imperialist project. It is promoting ideas of a new Silk road and Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline, all in the name of regional integration, but actually designed to fashion a regional economy that fits into its exploitative corporate dream. Like a parasite, the US has dug its teeth in Afghanistan, and with every drop of blood that it sucks out of its victim, it grows - and so does its greed for more. Reconciliation with the Afghan resistance would mean a trimming down, rather than further expansion, of these bloated goals.

As nothing on the ground indicates that the US is willing to revisit its Afghanistan project, all the niceties about respecting the APC resolution and openness to dialogue that Hillary Clinton half-heartedly mouthed are obviously a decoy. From Islamabad, she flew to Tajikistan to make alternative arrangements for NATO supplies in case Pakistan does not dance to its tune necessitating harsher action. While she took on a friendly tone to cajole us into submitting to the oft-repeated “do more” mantra, the Chairman of the Armed Services Committee of the US Senate threatened to hit targets in Pakistan and warned us that the US will cut ties with Islamabad if it continued to support the Haqqani network. We've also been told by Hillary Clinton that we should act in days or weeks not months or years.

She said she got a chance to hear the Pakistan side, but was she really listening? For obviously, it is not possible for Pakistan to stay aboard the US imperialist project anymore without acting against its own national interest. Other than the fact that carrying on with the US gameplan could only mean more violence and instability in the region and within our boundaries, the US insistence on giving India the role of a regional hegemon and Afghanistan's caretaker is not that reassuring. In Balochistan and FATA, we've already got a taste of the mischief that the mini-me hegemon is capable of fomenting from Afghan soil. In any case, why should Pakistan become a tool for helping the meddlesome global bully in establishing a permanent foothold next door and fashioning the region according to its greedy designs that have no place for either us or the Afghan people.

Obviously, there is a conflict of interests. The deadlock cannot be wished away by Clinton's insincere statements about respecting the APC resolution and giving peace a chance. If Pakistan is to proceed on the path outlined by the APC resolution, it will have to disentangle itself from such meaningless diplomatic exercises that only serve to distract us with meaningless discussions and weaken our resolve. Except for paying lip service to the possibilities of negotiations with the Afghan resistance, the US has basically stuck to its guns. While we waste our time trying to line up resistance leaders for fruitless discussions with a two-faced occupying power, it will continue to push ahead with its original plans. It would take more than a frank exchange of views to make the global bully rethink its goals in Afghanistan.

As was obvious from the joint press briefing by Foreign Minister Hina Khar and Clinton, the US would like us to tag along with it at Istanbul and Bonn, playing a 'constructive' role by staying on the same page. That would be unfortunate. For peace in the region, it would be far more productive for Pakistan to strongly articulate its position in light of the APC resolutions at these forums and push for a peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan that results in an end to the American occupation there. The need for a hectic diplomatic effort to enlist the support of Afghanistan's immediate neighbours for countering the US designs for the region is urgent.

The writer is an independent columnist.
Email: hazirjalees@hotmail.com


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