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Pakistan Insurgency More Threatening Than Afghan: Hearing
By kris osborn
Published: 14 Oct 2009 19:28
Panelists told U.S. lawmakers that Taliban, insurgent and al-Qaida fighters in Pakistan were more of a security concern than those the U.S.-led coalition is fighting in Afghanistan.
At the same time, the expert witnesses emphasized during the Oct. 14 hearing of the House Armed Services Committee that the fates of the two countries are inextricably linked, and that allowing the Taliban to again gain a foothold in Afghanistan should not be an option.
The hearing took place amid debate over whether Congress and the White House should support Gen. Stanley's McChrystal's recommendation to send thousands more U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
"Pakistan is a country which we obviously have so much at stake. It is where al-Qaida is located now. It has a real, live nuclear arsenal, and it is a country that is currently waging an insurgency against a variety of terrorist and insurgent groups active already within its own borders," said Stephen Biddle, senior fellow for defense policy, Council on Foreign Relations.
"Should Pakistan collapse and risk the security of its nuclear arsenal, American security would be directly at threat. The problem is, we have very little ability to deal with that threat directly. I would much rather that we were able to deploy the troops we are currently thinking about deploying for counterinsurgency in Afghanistan to assist the Pakistanis in prevailing in their insurgency, which is more important to us."
Pakistani public opinion, among other factors, makes that more difficult, Biddle said.
Meanwhile, panelists warned how potential instability in Afghanistan could affect Pakistan. Retired Gen. Jack Keane, former Army vice chief of staff, said success in Afghanistan will be crucial to assisting the Pakistanis in their commensurate effort to attack insurgents in their country.
"The al-Qaida had a sanctuary in Afghanistan for a number of reasons, [including] because the terrain and the geography lent itself to shielding much better than the terrain in Pakistan. In my judgment, with Taliban protection as host again, they would want to re-establish some element of that. Also, we are beginning to have them bottled up a little bit in Pakistan. We are using a lot of the infrastructure we have in Afghanistan to assist in Pakistan," Keane said. "I don't know how we can continue to make progress in Pakistan if we lose in Afghanistan."
Pakistan Insurgency More Threatening Than Afghan: Hearing - Defense News
By kris osborn
Published: 14 Oct 2009 19:28
Panelists told U.S. lawmakers that Taliban, insurgent and al-Qaida fighters in Pakistan were more of a security concern than those the U.S.-led coalition is fighting in Afghanistan.
At the same time, the expert witnesses emphasized during the Oct. 14 hearing of the House Armed Services Committee that the fates of the two countries are inextricably linked, and that allowing the Taliban to again gain a foothold in Afghanistan should not be an option.
The hearing took place amid debate over whether Congress and the White House should support Gen. Stanley's McChrystal's recommendation to send thousands more U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
"Pakistan is a country which we obviously have so much at stake. It is where al-Qaida is located now. It has a real, live nuclear arsenal, and it is a country that is currently waging an insurgency against a variety of terrorist and insurgent groups active already within its own borders," said Stephen Biddle, senior fellow for defense policy, Council on Foreign Relations.
"Should Pakistan collapse and risk the security of its nuclear arsenal, American security would be directly at threat. The problem is, we have very little ability to deal with that threat directly. I would much rather that we were able to deploy the troops we are currently thinking about deploying for counterinsurgency in Afghanistan to assist the Pakistanis in prevailing in their insurgency, which is more important to us."
Pakistani public opinion, among other factors, makes that more difficult, Biddle said.
Meanwhile, panelists warned how potential instability in Afghanistan could affect Pakistan. Retired Gen. Jack Keane, former Army vice chief of staff, said success in Afghanistan will be crucial to assisting the Pakistanis in their commensurate effort to attack insurgents in their country.
"The al-Qaida had a sanctuary in Afghanistan for a number of reasons, [including] because the terrain and the geography lent itself to shielding much better than the terrain in Pakistan. In my judgment, with Taliban protection as host again, they would want to re-establish some element of that. Also, we are beginning to have them bottled up a little bit in Pakistan. We are using a lot of the infrastructure we have in Afghanistan to assist in Pakistan," Keane said. "I don't know how we can continue to make progress in Pakistan if we lose in Afghanistan."
Pakistan Insurgency More Threatening Than Afghan: Hearing - Defense News
