Salim,
The time and place of proxy wars went away with 9/11 and Kissinger's material is outdated and outmoded now. Stronger nations have found out that proxy wars are double edged swords. Technology has created many an equalizers.
Proxy war can never be outdated. They appear in new avatars and reinvents itself and hence Kissinger, the brilliant but diabolical mind, can never be far behind! The situation in Pakistan is but a proxy war reinvented. Taliban and AQ is being attacked by Pakistan on behalf of the US. Enough has been written on this forum to show the anger of Moslems being made to kill Moslems and so on.
One should not be a slave to technology. They are mere force multipliers and they can never replace boots on the ground in the same way that tanks and artillery can never replace infantry since victory is measured in physical occupation of territory.
Direct wars have telling effect on the morale of the civilian population of the country waging war as also it becomes a prestige issue that has to pursued till the end, ruining the progress and development of the country embarking on such a war. The US is realising the same, more so in Iraq than in Afghanistan, where in the latter it has others mostly doing the work for them on both sides of the Durand Line!
There is no pro u s shia crescent---never say never---but u s is trying to hide its embarrassment of creating one and aides have come up with the idea of of pro u s shia crescent. Was the bombing in syria a part of the strategy---to keep them in line and put them in their place. Russia wants to keep its pro russian shia crescent----so we will see who wins this war. The bear is not going to let go of its domain without putting up a good fight.
Like it or not, pleasant or otherwise, the Shia crescent is an important aspect in the US policy. Against the Taliban, the US had used the Northern Alliance to its good use and it also looked the other side when others were supporting the Northern Alliance. It was obvious that it wanted the Taliban out. Even the Karzai govt has important portfolios with the Northern Alliance people.
Implementing a country's geostrategy is time consuming and there is no Merlin's magic wand!
Indeed, Russia is also involved in maintain the divide amongst the Shias and Sunnis in the ME to Afghanistan. It has to have a weak underbelly or else it will be in serious trouble!
Therefore, both the US and Russia are working towards the same goal but jockeying in concert to ensure that neither the Shia nor the Sunni countries get the upper hand.
There is no totally committed baloch situation to put a squeeze on the iranians. The few of them can't hold their own against the para millitary forces at this stage----the baloch at large are very peaceful people. It looks like a great possibility that five years down the road, with so many projects seeing completion, the afghan refugees goin back to afghanistan next year, would be changing the flora of thought and job market in that area. So, that firecracker would prove to be a dud.
Oceans after all start as mere droplets and then these droplets turn into rivers and these rivers pour into chasms to make the oceans.
Jobs and economy can never snuff out the human tendency to be supreme. If you look at the world, we as humans, are the same with the same desires to live our lives as best as we can. But in that thought, there burns the desire to excel and get even better. That creates competition and this, in turn, starts the r-at race. Same is true of nations.
Therefore, even if all is well with people, there will be means to drive the shaft and create new ghosts to run after.
India does not bring in any balance to the situation in this area---it is an outsider---will always be considered as one---it is a misconception that india will stand up to a master 12000 miles away----but then never say never---we will love to see india wag its tail to its new master.
That is your opinion and you are entitled to it.
As far as the US being India's master, I think it would be better to analyse it deeper. India does not take anything free from the US nor has India been bought by lollies given to India gratis. India pays the US for what it buys. India takes no aid or free lollies since the national pride is not up for sale, nor is India that poverty stricken that it humbly and gratefully accept money and freebies and then jumps to the crack of the US whip!
Thank the Creator for small mercies!
So, there is no such thing for India called wagging its tail to the new master!
