Pakistan to bar CIA operations from its territory

[third eye]

I think post 9/11 Pak had a wonderful God sent opportunity to right a lot of wrongs. If played correctly it could have been a game changer. It now seems that its an opprtunity lost thanks to the hawks and the consistent policy of running with hare & hunting with the hound.

You cannot afterall fool all the people all the time.

Panetta and Pakistan | DAWN.COM


THE US-Pakistan relationship is going through one of its roughest patches. But that does not justify the US defence secretary’s provocative public remarks in foreign capitals on each side of Pakistan in recent days. In Kabul yesterday Mr Panetta said America was reaching the “limits of [its] patience” regarding terrorist safe havens in the tribal areas.

And New Delhi was an entirely inappropriate location for him to publicly discuss US-Pakistan tensions, compare them to India-Pakistan tensions, or share a joke about hiding the Osama bin Laden raid from Pakistan — all while describing India as an integral partner for America’s new military strategy in Asia. The language the secretary has used, in the locations he has chosen to use it, only runs the risk of making Pakistan’s security establishment more intransigent and paranoid and will become fodder for right-wing forces propagating anti-India and anti-America opinions. All of which will only make it tougher for the Pakistani government to cooperate with the US. It is unclear to what extent the State Department agrees with Mr Panetta’s approach, or whether, along with the stepped-up drone strikes, his words are part of a new and more aggressive American tactic to address the current impasse over Nato supply routes. But sending such messages publicly in foreign capitals with which Pakistan has complicated relationships — rather than limiting them to private discussions in Islamabad or Washington — will likely be counterproductive.

For Pakistan, this should be a moment to stop and think about where our strategies and policies have gotten us. Mr Panetta’s remarks highlighted the isolation into which the country has dragged itself. They also threw into stark contrast the much greater international sympathy that other regional players have managed to earn from the world. The perception of Pakistan as the global problem child now exists from the highest levels of foreign governments to the average foreign citizen; a recent worldwide BBC survey on the perceived positive or negative influence of various countries ranked Pakistan second from the bottom.

So in one corner we see an obstinate Pakistan stalling on Nato supply routes, demanding an apology over Salala and failing to communicate successfully to the world why it is not going after certain safe havens. In the other corner there is an America that has ramped up drone attacks in the face of categorical Pakistani objections and is making aggressive public statements in India and Afghanistan. After 9/11, the two countries had a chance to forge a mutually advantageous relationship that could also have benefited the region and the world. They are both wasting the opportunity.

 

[SamantK]

With the hatred American is associated with, we cannot see Pakistan looking at it that way. The time is lost and the train(s) left the station long back. Now, some Pakistanis will call me a American spokesperson and sycophant. Humbly yours!

 

[Devil Soul]

Relations Sour: Pakistan to bar CIA operations from its territory
By: Online | 17 minutes ago |
President Barack Obama has ordered a sharp increase in drone strikes against suspected terrorists in Pakistan in recent months, anticipating Pakistan may soon bar such CIA operations launched from its territory, two U.S. officials said.
His decision reflects mounting U.S. frustration with Pakistan over a growing list of disputes -- mirrored by Pakistani grievances with the U.S. -- that have soured relations and weakened security cooperation. The U.S. is withholding at least $3 billion in reimbursements for counterinsurgency operations and security-related funding, according to congressional aides and Pakistani officials, reported Bloomberg.
In more than a dozen interviews, diplomats from both nations say they are trying to repair rifts that have sent relations to the lowest point in two decades, while military and intelligence officials are less sanguine about building trust. At stake are billions of dollars in U.S. funding for an ally in financial crisis, and American influence with a nuclear-armed power as U.S. forces pull out of neighboring Afghanistan.
U.S. officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss classified intelligence, said they expect Pakistan may order the CIA to vacate the remaining air base from which it flies Predators to target militants sheltered in Pakistan’s tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.
The U.S. has conducted drone attacks since 2004 with the tacit approval of authorities in Islamabad. Pakistan’s parliament and leaders are now demanding an end to the strikes, calling them a violation of the country’s sovereignty.
The Obama administration is so frustrated by what it regards as Pakistan’s unwillingness to crack down on certain militant groups and resolve other issues -- such as frozen NATO supply lines to Afghanistan -- that it is prepared to accept aid cuts pending in Congress and to cultivate closer relations with India, Pakistan’s longtime rival, U.S. officials said.
Pakistan has its own set of grievances with the U.S., and Panetta’s scolding doesn’t help, said Pakistan’s Ambassador to Washington Sherry Rehman.
“This kind of public messaging from a senior member of the U.S. administration is taken very seriously in Pakistan, and reduces the space for narrowing our bilateral differences at a critical time in the negotiations,” she said in an interview. “It adds an unhelpful twist to the process and leaves little oxygen for those of us seeking to break a stalemate.”
Cooperation has been at a standstill for more than six months since Pakistan shut down NATO military supply routes to Afghanistan after U.S. forces accidentally killed 24 Pakistani border forces during a friendly fire incident in November.
U.S. and Pakistani officials said they are trying to reach an accommodation on the two most serious disagreements: the drone operation and military supply routes. Most spoke on condition of anonymity to be candid about the tensions in an alliance that has fallen to its lowest point since 1990. That year, Congress banned most economic and military aid to Pakistan over its nuclear program, and the U.S. refused to deliver a fleet of F-16 aircraft for which Pakistan had paid nearly $500 million.
Last month, officials on both sides suggested intelligence sharing might be possible to allow drone strikes to be conducted in concert and suggested a deal might be coming on supply lines. This week, no one expressed optimism about a breakthrough on either issue -- or any quick resolution of many other disagreements.
“This relationship is sinking but has yet to reach the bottom,” said Bruce Riedel, a former CIA analyst who led a White House review of U.S. policy on Afghanistan and Pakistan when Obama first took office.
Pakistani national security officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, denied that Pakistan is aiding U.S. enemies. Two officials said if the U.S. has evidence that the Haqqanis maintain bases in Pakistan’s tribal areas, it should share that information so Pakistan can eliminate them.
The Pakistani officials said the U.S. hasn’t done so and hasn’t used its drones to destroy militant bases in Pakistan, undermining claims that Pakistan is actively sheltering insurgents.
Pakistani security officials also said it’s insulting that Obama refused to meet with their president at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Chicago last month.
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they made clear in advance that Obama would meet with President Asif Ali Zardari only if a deal was reached to reopen the NATO supply lines to Afghanistan. U.S. officials thought they had Pakistani assurances, and officials said that failure was one more blow to Pakistan’s standing with the administration.
U.S. officials said the supply-route talks are hung up because Pakistan is demanding more money than the U.S. is willing to pay to move cargo. Pakistan is also seeking U.S. funding for road repairs and other infrastructure rebuilding to compensate for wear and tear from NATO convoys, according to U.S. officials.
Rehman said the issue is about “coming up with new frameworks of mutual cooperation,” not money.
Military aid was suspended following the uproar in Pakistan over the violation of its sovereignty by the U.S. raid that killed bin Laden in Abbottabad. Pakistan expelled U.S. military trainers and denied visas for U.S. officials.
The U.S. acknowledges it hasn’t paid Pakistan more than $1 billion in counterinsurgency reimbursements owed since December 2010. Pakistan says that tab has now grown to $3 billion.
Relations Sour: Pakistan to bar CIA operations from its territory | The Nation

 

[Safriz]

there are no more drones flying from Pakistan??

 

[T90TankGuy]

i am sorry , but is this news for local consumption , to show people they are doing something . or are they actually going to do something?

 

[core]

cooked news ....cia working like blood in ur vien.....
stopping cia like stopping america

 

[Leviza]

Cooperation has been at a standstill for more than six months since Pakistan shut down NATO military supply routes to Afghanistan after U.S. forces accidentally killed 24 Pakistani border forces during a friendly fire incident in November.

that was not accidentally, it was intentionally and proved so many times.

 

[Imran Khan]

so still they are in pakistan and working ?? BARY BE HAYA HAIN BHI HUM LOG

 

[datalibdaz]

if Pakistan wants it can stop the drones and remove all CIA operatives from here..as it did with the vital NATO supplies..removing CIA wont be a problem as US of A has already stopped the money owed to Pakistan on WoT.

 

[Don Jaguar]

and the U.S. refused to deliver a fleet of F-16 aircraft for which Pakistan had paid nearly $500 million

Old tactic.

 

[nwmalik]

you always need two to tangle.
Pakistan gets all the blame.

 

[Sher Malang]

a recent worldwide BBC survey on the perceived positive or negative influence of various countries ranked Pakistan second from the bottom.

Any link for this buddy?

 

[AbhijitSingh]

Any link for this buddy?

http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/mar11/BBCEvalsUS_Mar11_rpt.pdf

Page 3 of the report

 

[VCheng]

Any link for this buddy?

http://www.globescan.com/images/ima...ings/2012_bbc_country rating final 080512.pdf

 

[Pakistanisage]

Leon Panetta is not the sharpest tool in the US shed. This bumbling should be muzzled by the US Administration.