‘Pakistan, US agree on alternative training site’: US army trainers coming in weeks

[Neo]

‘Pakistan, US agree on alternative training site’: US army trainers coming in weeks​

* Mullen says US has no desire to get into engagement with Pak military
* LAT says Islamabad initially resisted trainers​

LAHORE: A long-delayed plan to send dozens of US military advisers to Pakistan to train the Pakistan Army in counter-insurgency could begin in a matter of weeks under a new agreement on a training base, a Los Angeles Times (LAT) report said.

The LAT quoted Joint Chiefs Chairman Michael Mullen as saying the US and Pakistan had cleared the remaining obstacles to the arrival of the advisers.

Washington has been urging the Pakistani military to accept the training team for months, the report said. However, Pakistan has resisted such advice, and asked for additional weaponry and equipment that the paper said “some US officials believe is best suited for its standoff with regional rival India”.

Mullen said in an interview that the primary stumbling block had been the fact that Pakistan could not build the training site, near Peshawar, quickly enough, and the two sideas had now agrred to use an alternative base north of the capital.

“We’re still going through some administrative delays, but I do see it happening,” Mullen was quoted as saying. “I think it’s in the next few weeks.”

Mullen said he had made his latest visit to Pakistan because of accusations that the US had violated Pakistan’s sovereignty in a raid this month near the Afghan border. The attacks made Pakistani officials issue a warning that they might open fire on foreign troops crossing into Pakistani territory.

Mullen believed Pakistani officials were insisting on their right “to defend their country, which I understand, which anybody understands”, the LAT said. The paper also quoted Mullen as saying, “Clearly, we have no desire to get into any kind of engagement with the Pakistani military.”

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Looks like the relationship might be moving back to teh position it was in before the 11 FC soldiers were killed by the US.

Good to hear - more cooperation and less unilateral escalation is what is needed.

Original LA Times article here:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mullen19-2008sep19,0,2298512.story

 

[RabzonKhan]

‘Pakistan, US agree on alternative training site’: US army trainers coming in weeks​

This was long overdue, good news.

 

[Munir]

I get bored with the usual link with India. Are these Indians terrified with every weapon Pakistan gets? And whow come we have to stick with US advise? They failed miserably in Irac and Afghanistan when it comes to correct intellegence, war planning, executing and rebuilding... And they will be the first that will able to win Pashtuns cause history showed a better track record for local people...

 

[IceCold]

Is it really necessary to have US trainers inside Pakistan to train PA? I mean come on they have themselves failed miserably, what is that they can probally teach us in COIN warefare? Also any cooperation that is needed is interms of equipment where when asked all start to question its use without understanding a simple fact that what will an ACE do if he has no jet to fly at the first place?

 

[blain2]

Is it really necessary to have US trainers inside Pakistan to train PA? I mean come on they have themselves failed miserably, what is that they can probally teach us in COIN warefare? Also any cooperation that is needed is interms of equipment where when asked all start to question its use without understanding a simple fact that what will an ACE do if he has no jet to fly at the first place?

Ice,

Regardless of how miserable someone's performance is, one can gain from their "lessons learned". Nobody has the "right" solution for Counter-Insurgency operations. However having said that, the US has the most recent CI experience and it would be beneficial for Pakistan. The key is that we keep it very controlled and only let them interface with our officers/JCO/NCOs who in turn would train the FC cadres (I.E. Train the Trainer approach).

 

[fatman17]

Ice,

Regardless of how miserable someone's performance is, one can gain from their "lessons learned". Nobody has the "right" solution for Counter-Insurgency operations. However having said that, the US has the most recent CI experience and it would be beneficial for Pakistan. The key is that we keep it very controlled and only let them interface with our officers/JCO/NCOs who in turn would train the FC cadres (I.E. Train the Trainer approach).

care to speculate where the new site is?
wana, DIKhan, Kohat

 

[IceCold]

Ice,

Regardless of how miserable someone's performance is, one can gain from their "lessons learned". Nobody has the "right" solution for Counter-Insurgency operations. However having said that, the US has the most recent CI experience and it would be beneficial for Pakistan. The key is that we keep it very controlled and only let them interface with our officers/JCO/NCOs who in turn would train the FC cadres (I.E. Train the Trainer approach).

If US has the most recent CI experience, so does we and recent success rate in both FATA and SWAT proves my point. ANything that we need assistance is in equipment like night vision equippment, sniper pods for the F-16s, Cobras, communication gear, real time intelligence sharing. These are the things we need to cooperate in. Not training. And i for one am 100% sure that If US is realy sincere with its efforts w.r.t Pakistan and hence provides us with the same as mentioned above, we can root out AQ and taliban once and for all. We have the capability, we lack the required gear.

 

[blain2]

care to speculate where the new site is?
wana, DIKhan, Kohat

I personally think somewhere around Tarbela but this is speculation on my part.

 

[blain2]

If US has the most recent CI experience, so does we and recent success rate in both FATA and SWAT proves my point. ANything that we need assistance is in equipment like night vision equippment, sniper pods for the F-16s, Cobras, communication gear, real time intelligence sharing. These are the things we need to cooperate in. Not training. And i for one am 100% sure that If US is realy sincere with its efforts w.r.t Pakistan and hence provides us with the same as mentioned above, we can root out AQ and taliban once and for all. We have the capability, we lack the required gear.

Not ruling out the equipment. We need that as well. Training together is not all bad. It provides different perspective to own troops.

 

[AAHAN]

No doubt USA should probably learn from ISI but professionalism demands to give it a try.(Failures are best learning examples)
B U T
Won't it be better to conduct these trainings in USA.
Reasons:
1.Most pakistanis might get an impression that our forces were incapable
2.it might be seen as American involvement in internal military matters
3.The idea of "NAPAK AMRIKI QADAM IN PAKISTAN" will take strength
4.This will create unnecessary security risk in our capital vicinities(remem:attack on ssg near tarbela)
So, what do you say?

 

[fatman17]

I personally think somewhere around Tarbela but this is speculation on my part.

the article says south of peshawar city.

 

[fatman17]

No doubt USA should probably learn from ISI but professionalism demands to give it a try.(Failures are best learning examples)
B U T
Won't it be better to conduct these trainings in USA.
Reasons:
1.Most pakistanis might get an impression that our forces were incapable
2.it might be seen as American involvement in internal military matters
3.The idea of "NAPAK AMRIKI QADAM IN PAKISTAN" will take strength
4.This will create unnecessary security risk in our capital vicinities(remem:attack on ssg near tarbela)
So, what do you say?

yes if it was a normal training course under peace-time conditions but we are at war and the need is very urgent. it has to be in pakistan.

 

[Neo]

Pakistan not equipped to combat tribal militants: US​

* US national security adviser highlights Pak-Afghan border threat
* Declines to address US strikes within Pakistan​

WASHINGTON: Pakistan is not yet equipped to combat the terrorist threat from the remote area bordering Afghanistan, a senior official of the George W Bush administration said on Friday amid increased American strikes in the area.

United States National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said Washington was trying to help Pakistan’s government address the threat, but did not discuss American counter-terrorism efforts in the area, including a reported US commando raid.

“This is a problem that has been created in Pakistan’s sovereign territory and is going to be solved when Pakistan has the ability to exercise control over that territory,” Hadley told reporters. “We recognise that right now, there are threats emanating out of that area that threaten Pakistan and our troops in Afghanistan,” he said ahead of Bush’s meeting with President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday.

The meeting before the United Nations General Assembly comes as tensions flare between the two allies over suspected US strikes within Pakistan’s borders against Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters.

US strikes: Hadley declined to address US strikes within Pakistan or concerns that US forces could come under fire from Pakistani troops if they entered Pakistan without Islamabad’s permission. “We want to co-operate closely with Pakistan and ensure as best as we can that threats do not materialise out of the Pak-Afghan border area,” said Hadley, adding, “We’re working very closely with Pakistani authorities.”

Hadley acknowledged that Pakistan’s government was working to find its footing and that “they obviously are very concerned about Pakistani sovereignty”.

With violence declining in Iraq, Washington has increased its focus on Afghanistan and the border region with Pakistan, where attacks have soared over the past two years. US officials have said that Pakistan was not doing enough to clamp down on militants using that region as a base.

But some analysts cautioned that unilateral US action had put pressure on Pakistan’s new government and threatened its co-operation with Washington. President Zardari and Bush had spoken via telephone last week and had pledged to continue co-operating. A strike on Wednesday on the Pakistani side of the border killed five militants. But a senior Pakistani official with knowledge of the operations told reporters that it was a result of better intelligence sharing with the US.

This followed a visit to Pakistan by US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen, who reiterated America’s commitment to respect Pakistan’s sovereignty. reuters

 

[fatman17]

^^^well if we are not properly equipped then they should provide it - deeds are better than words.

1. quickly upgrade our Cobras's.
2. provide us more Cobras, better yet offer us AH-64D apache's.
3. provide us real-time intelligence sharing.
4. provide more NV equipment.
5. equip our cobras with the Hellfire AGM.
6. pak should quickly accept the CI trg offer.

the problem is the pentagon is willing to provide all such equipment but the congress keeps thinking that all this will be used v. india in a future war. in my opinion the chances of war with india are remote bcuz of the nuclear threat of both sides.

so what is happening is that the US is creating a "Fog of War" by giving such statements but then doing nothing about it....and pls dont bring up the US10B given to pakistan on the WoT.