IndoCarib
ELITE MEMBER
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2011
- Messages
- 10,784
- Reaction score
- -14
- Country
- Location
By
Saeed Shah ,
Adam Entous and
Gordon Lubold
Aug. 21, 2015 9:32 a.m. ET
The U.S. has warned Pakistan that it will withhold $300 million in military assistance if Islamabad doesn’t do more to crack down on militants targeting American and Afghan troops in Afghanistan, senior Obama administration officials said.
If Washington follows through on its pledge, it would be the first time Pakistan is made to pay financially by the U.S. for playing what the country’s critics call a double game—being a well-compensated U.S. partner while at the same time allowing Afghan insurgents safe harbor.
Under a U.S. law passed last year, Washington must withhold funds from the Pakistan military if the country doesn’t take adequate steps to disrupt the Haqqani network, a Taliban ally described in 2011 by U.S. Adm. Mike Mullen, then chairman of the joint chiefs, as “a veritable arm” of Pakistani military intelligence. “What we’re doing with the government of Pakistan is having a clear and candid conversation with them about that requirement and about the concerns we have with regard to the Haqqanis,” a senior U.S. official said.
The official said the Pentagon hasn’t decided yet whether it will certify that Islamabad has done enough to counter the Haqqanis to avoid losing a chunk of its 2015 Coalition Support Funds—money meant to reimburse Pakistan for expenses incurred fighting militants near the Afghan border. Since 2002, Pakistan has received about $1 billion a year under the program.
Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said Islamabad and Washington are “engaged in consultations on various issues, including the Coalition Support Funds.” He said that Pakistan has vigorously battled militants and terror groups.
“Action is being taken across the board, against all enemies of Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are no good or bad terrorists,” Mr. Khalilullah told reporters in Islamabad.
If the U.S. penalty is imposed, it could further strain ties between Pakistan and the U.S., which is hoping Islamabad will use its influence to get the Taliban and the Haqqani network to participate in peace talks with the Afghan government.
Pakistan, worried that support from the U.S. is fading, has looked to strengthen ties with one-time enemy Russia as well as with China. On Thursday, Pakistan announced that it was buying four advanced military helicopters from Russia.
Pakistan says it is targeting all jihadist groups in its territory and last year launched a large-scale military operation in the North Waziristan tribal area, a region along the Afghan border that has been a sanctuary for the Haqqani network, al Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban.
The main town of North Waziristan, Miranshah, which previously functioned as a headquarters for the Haqqanis, has been flattened, as has another town, Mir Ali, which was also a jihadist stronghold.
But U.S. officials have told Pakistani counterparts in recent days that their operations haven't sufficiently damaged the Haqqani network to qualify for the $300 million in funds at risk.
After the Taliban admitted last month that Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar died years ago, senior Taliban met in Quetta, a city in western Pakistan, and chose new leaders, including Sirajuddin Haqqani, head of the Haqqani network.
Mr. Haqqani is described by other Taliban officials as close to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency.
While the Haqqanis have been disrupted from their long standing safe havens in Miranshah and Mir Ali, we are concerned that they’ve been able to reconstitute their operations in other parts of Pakistan and continue their plotting, and attack planning against us and our friends in Afghanistan,” said the senior U.S. official.
U.S. concerns about the Haqqanis have taken on new urgency in recent weeks, officials said, following a series of brazen attacks blamed on the group in Afghanistan against the Afghan government and U.S. forces there.
Still, the Obama administration is keen to keep aiding Pakistan. One U.S. official said Washington is supportive in general of Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts, including the North Waziristan operation, and that the administration would ask Congress to continue the reimbursement program—which is due to end on Sept. 30—into 2016 and beyond.
Since 2002, Pakistan has received more than $31 billion in U.S. civilian and military aid, including $13 billion under the Coalition Support Funds, according to the Congressional Research Service.
Pakistan’s military on Thursday announced that it had started a new phase of the North Waziristan operation, a ground offensive in the hard terrain of the Shawal valley, which has become a last redoubt for the area’s militants. The Pakistan military said in June that the operation had killed 2,763 militants. Nearly 350 soldiers died.
According to militants and local residents who spoke to The Wall Street Journal as the military operation in North Waziristan got under way in summer 2014, members of the Haqqani network left before fighting erupted.
Many foot-soldiers relocated to other parts of the tribal areas. Some leaders moved to major Pakistani towns including the provincial capital Peshawar— especially its upscale University Town and Hayatabad suburbs, militants and security officials said.
U.S. Threatens to Withhold Pakistan Aid - WSJ
Saeed Shah ,
Adam Entous and
Gordon Lubold
Aug. 21, 2015 9:32 a.m. ET
The U.S. has warned Pakistan that it will withhold $300 million in military assistance if Islamabad doesn’t do more to crack down on militants targeting American and Afghan troops in Afghanistan, senior Obama administration officials said.
If Washington follows through on its pledge, it would be the first time Pakistan is made to pay financially by the U.S. for playing what the country’s critics call a double game—being a well-compensated U.S. partner while at the same time allowing Afghan insurgents safe harbor.
Under a U.S. law passed last year, Washington must withhold funds from the Pakistan military if the country doesn’t take adequate steps to disrupt the Haqqani network, a Taliban ally described in 2011 by U.S. Adm. Mike Mullen, then chairman of the joint chiefs, as “a veritable arm” of Pakistani military intelligence. “What we’re doing with the government of Pakistan is having a clear and candid conversation with them about that requirement and about the concerns we have with regard to the Haqqanis,” a senior U.S. official said.
The official said the Pentagon hasn’t decided yet whether it will certify that Islamabad has done enough to counter the Haqqanis to avoid losing a chunk of its 2015 Coalition Support Funds—money meant to reimburse Pakistan for expenses incurred fighting militants near the Afghan border. Since 2002, Pakistan has received about $1 billion a year under the program.
Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said Islamabad and Washington are “engaged in consultations on various issues, including the Coalition Support Funds.” He said that Pakistan has vigorously battled militants and terror groups.
“Action is being taken across the board, against all enemies of Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are no good or bad terrorists,” Mr. Khalilullah told reporters in Islamabad.
If the U.S. penalty is imposed, it could further strain ties between Pakistan and the U.S., which is hoping Islamabad will use its influence to get the Taliban and the Haqqani network to participate in peace talks with the Afghan government.
Pakistan, worried that support from the U.S. is fading, has looked to strengthen ties with one-time enemy Russia as well as with China. On Thursday, Pakistan announced that it was buying four advanced military helicopters from Russia.
Pakistan says it is targeting all jihadist groups in its territory and last year launched a large-scale military operation in the North Waziristan tribal area, a region along the Afghan border that has been a sanctuary for the Haqqani network, al Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban.
The main town of North Waziristan, Miranshah, which previously functioned as a headquarters for the Haqqanis, has been flattened, as has another town, Mir Ali, which was also a jihadist stronghold.
But U.S. officials have told Pakistani counterparts in recent days that their operations haven't sufficiently damaged the Haqqani network to qualify for the $300 million in funds at risk.
After the Taliban admitted last month that Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar died years ago, senior Taliban met in Quetta, a city in western Pakistan, and chose new leaders, including Sirajuddin Haqqani, head of the Haqqani network.
Mr. Haqqani is described by other Taliban officials as close to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency.
While the Haqqanis have been disrupted from their long standing safe havens in Miranshah and Mir Ali, we are concerned that they’ve been able to reconstitute their operations in other parts of Pakistan and continue their plotting, and attack planning against us and our friends in Afghanistan,” said the senior U.S. official.
U.S. concerns about the Haqqanis have taken on new urgency in recent weeks, officials said, following a series of brazen attacks blamed on the group in Afghanistan against the Afghan government and U.S. forces there.
Still, the Obama administration is keen to keep aiding Pakistan. One U.S. official said Washington is supportive in general of Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts, including the North Waziristan operation, and that the administration would ask Congress to continue the reimbursement program—which is due to end on Sept. 30—into 2016 and beyond.
Since 2002, Pakistan has received more than $31 billion in U.S. civilian and military aid, including $13 billion under the Coalition Support Funds, according to the Congressional Research Service.
Pakistan’s military on Thursday announced that it had started a new phase of the North Waziristan operation, a ground offensive in the hard terrain of the Shawal valley, which has become a last redoubt for the area’s militants. The Pakistan military said in June that the operation had killed 2,763 militants. Nearly 350 soldiers died.
According to militants and local residents who spoke to The Wall Street Journal as the military operation in North Waziristan got under way in summer 2014, members of the Haqqani network left before fighting erupted.
Many foot-soldiers relocated to other parts of the tribal areas. Some leaders moved to major Pakistani towns including the provincial capital Peshawar— especially its upscale University Town and Hayatabad suburbs, militants and security officials said.
U.S. Threatens to Withhold Pakistan Aid - WSJ
![[Bregs]](/data/avatars/m/148/148509.jpg?1491816884){kind=avatar}
