Pentagon criticizes Mullen to have "overstated the case" (somewhat)

[VCheng]

I'm more cautious about the fact that Americans don't fail at their strategic offenses so easily as they seemed to have here. They will come back harder next time.

The key word here is "seemed". The US pursuit of national interests is relentless, and you are wise to caution as you do.

 

[fd24]

The key word here is "seemed". The US pursuit of national interests is relentless, and you are wise to caution as you do.

I think the USA have attempted to put Pakistan in "check". Pakistans response, so far , is to play with a straight bat. My concerns lie with what long term damage may have been incurred between the relationship which has already been stretched recently. A diplomatic cloak i envisage will be put over the whole escapade. Perhaps a few dollars would help?

 

[karan.1970]

Your assumption is that Karan's personal opinion would become Pakistan's anti-terrorism policy - which itself I doubt it.

There is no mood in Pakistan to open another front. Things are calm-ish right now, Mehsuds have been beaten and now mainly operate in US controlled areas. Given the whole Bulawi incident where US tried to foment ties with the TTP, who is to say that the US giving TTP some form of leeway or sanctuary in Afghanistan?

Pakistan is not going after the Haqqanis because there is no need to. When you guys leave Afghanistan, they will go back there. Not your headache, not mine. The only deal that can happen is that till the time you're around we can pressure the Haqqanis not to go around taking such an overt anti-US stance so that your President can do the whole King Kong style chest thumping and go out of Afghanistan with some face-saving.

Which is what I think has happened when the Saudis came here and the two meetings Salman Bashir had one before the Saudis and one after them with Cameron Munter.

Noticed your President is kinda mum on the whole thing, we all knows how much he likes to grand stand run his mouth on every little thing. If there was an anti-Pakistan initiative being planned your President would have set things in motion. Instead Hillary running around and I believe coming to Pakistan too to calm things a bit.

Nothing was going to happen, the Haqqanis went too far in making Americans look bad due to the Truck Bombing and the US embassy. If there are like 100 American casualties in one week, and Americans are saying Afghanistan is under their control, they'll come off as liars. So throw a massive tantrum and blame someone else, was their only other move.

Do you think that in this day and age of information sharing at the speed of light, it is going to be so simple for a country like USA to show peace for a few months and be able to save face.. If Pakistan is planning its strategy on these assumptions then its at its own peril..

btw, just trying to remember when did Obama last do his last round of chest thumping and running off his mouth??

Oh yeah.. It was AFTER a delivery package was collected from Pakistan's military academy town for a delivery to the middle of Arabian sea.. (with the focus on the word AFTER)

 

[Thor]

Anyone who believes into this report is mistaken. No report can be made official and public unless it is scrutinised heavily by auditors within the US Military and government. These comments were made by Mullen with the full backing of the US Government, to observe the response of the Pakistani people, Military and their stooge Government in Pakistan.

Carrying out drone strikes and going after a high value target is one thing, which has been agreed with the US Military, hence the Government of PPP must honour those agreements made by Musharaf, and the fact that this Government would have done so anyway, to safeguard their billions in foreign banks.

However, a surgical strike or entering those hotspot areas is a change of tactic and not part of any agreement, therefore any such chage requires, testing the ground. The comments made by Mullen have sparked a chain reaction throughout Pakistan where everyone is united behind the ISI and Pak Military. This is what has surprised the US more, that despite all the allegations of ISI backing terrorists who have created destruction in Pakistan, the people of Pakistan are not going to allow boots on the ground as this will be an invasion......... and to those members who think it will not, look at the US past. Everytime they have entered a region of Afghanistan, they have had to move in further, and further, and further again as "the terrorists have left this region and gone deeper into Pakistan" will be the argument, which is very well known by the Pakistan Army.

When the APC comes to some decision, and IF, and I stress that word, IF implemented, then the US will retract such a statment as an outburst by an outgoing Admiral and that a new face is taking his place, a better "FRIEND OF PAKISTAN".

This shows the US ulterior plans and I am sorry to say this, but when we entered FATA and SWAT and launched attacks at the say so of the US, we killed th innocent children and women of these so called terrorists today. They were all our people, all of Pakistan. There was no TTP before this, no bomb blasts like what we have seen, yet we sided with the US and attacked our own people.

Agree with it or not, but who do you think these people should be helping now, IF and WHEN the US decies to attack Pakistan. Our friend, our ally and partner in the WoT is not being to cut its own ally down, and I can see the laughter on the faces of the TTP and others now, who themselevs have to this day stuck with one another through thick and thin, but Pakistan, who sided with the US, today they are no longer together. Question is, will the TTP forget their dead children and families and join us to deal with this matter together, or have we started a chain of events which are going to engulf this region for a bitter future........ personally, if it were my family killed by anyone, there would be NO resolution...sorry, but that is my view and I am sure others can make theirs if it were their families.

 

[Farooq]

total and utter BS!!!

Mullen is not an idiot, he knew exactly what he was saying and his criticism to falsely accuse Pakistan was is line with the administration's pro-bharat policy.

This intentional statement was made by Mullen to test the waters and to see how the collective Pakistani media, army & civilian leadership would react under public pressure

 

[Awesome]

Do you think that in this day and age of information sharing at the speed of light, it is going to be so simple for a country like USA to show peace for a few months and be able to save face.. If Pakistan is planning its strategy on these assumptions then its at its own peril..

2014 is a long time away. One year of peace was enough for America to talk about withdrawal from Iraq.

btw, just trying to remember when did Obama last do his last round of chest thumping and running off his mouth??

Let's not forget his election campaign, "Yes-we-can", oh and debt-ceiling debacle?

Oh yeah.. It was AFTER a delivery package was collected from Pakistan's military academy town for a delivery to the middle of Arabian sea.. (with the focus on the word AFTER)

Precisely - he had something there - so he manned up and went overboard, whereas there is still plenty of lies in his truths since he still shies away from showing O pics.

 

[Obambam]

total and utter BS!!!

Mullen is not an idiot, he knew exactly what he was saying and his criticism to falsely accuse Pakistan was is line with the administration's pro-bharat policy.

This intentional statement was made by Mullen to test the waters and to see how the collective Pakistani media, army & civilian leadership would react under public pressure

The day when there are no longer strong collective support and unity will be the day the America comes in. They are too overly stretched to do anything drastic to Pakistan but they are capable of taking advantage of ones weakness and will attempt to push a country into self destruction from within with its favorite tools - media and military force.

 

[Farooq]

The day when there are no longer strong collective support and unity will be the day the America comes in. They are too overly stretched to do anything drastic to Pakistan but they are capable of taking advantage of ones weakness and will attempt to push a country into self destruction from within with its favorite tools - media and military force.

well said!

 

[Abingdonboy]

Interesting- the most senior member of the US armed forces makes a public statement in Senate and we are expected to believe this man with a distinguished 43 year-long career has made an error and every word of his speech was not scrutinised and prrof read hundreds of times before such a statement was made? This man who is an expert in this region knew the exact gravity of his words and how they would be received. But now the USG casts doubt on this view? Smells VERY fishy to me. Perhaps damage control as the statement has caused for outrage in Pakistan than USG had expected.

 

[Rig Vedic]

Haqqanis want the US to leave
We want the US to leave
The US wants the US to leave.

The US cannot leave, there are long-term strategic requirements in Central Asia and AfPak.

 

[Last Hope]

I was also surprised by this fast development.

According to my estimates the war should break between 2012 - 2013 but not this year.

Exactly. Same here. I updated it on my facebook:

Pakistan WILL have a war with US. Not now, but within 3 years and that is GUARANTEED. Wish I were commissioned on the 26th Squadron.