Pakistan

The Problematic Pakis

Due to its complex blend of people, cultures, and ideas the Middle East and North Africa are the most hotly contested regions in the world. From the beaches of Morocco to the snow capped mountains of the Himalayans, deadly problems surrounding religion, politics, and many other issues seem to ignite daily. For a variety of reasons, one of the more interesting countries is Pakistan. The most important of them I believe, however, is its relationship with the Western powers. While once seen as a progressive minded nation in the region, the conflict in Afghanistan has revealed Pakistan's true color. The Pakistani government has repeatedly failed their international responsibility to thwart terrorism, going even so far as supporting it.

The American led coalition into Afghanistan in October 2001 did much to stem terrorist capabilities by deposing the Taliban. After initial operations concluded, the Taliban was shattered and scattered, and Afghanistan seemed to be heading in the right direction. Unfortunately, this period lasted only briefly. Violence is now its worst since early 2002 . Interestingly enough, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has pointed to Pakistan as a major reason for the increased hostilities . According to him and many Western officials, militants train in Pakistan before crossing over the border into Afghanistan to fight US and NATO troops . It has been known for some time that Afghani fighters and other terrorist live in Pakistan along the border with Afghanistan , and still the Pakistani government refuses to take control of its own country. In addition to harboring the Taliban, Pakistan has also been of accused of sheltering high-level members of al Qaeda including Osama bin Laden with even the United Nations' Assistant Mission to Afghanistan agreeing . Pakistan's response to the problem has been weak and will be ineffective if not changed.

Against the wishes of Afghanistan and Western powers, the government of Pakistan has recently decided to mine and fence its border along Afghanistan. While this action may appear as a step in the right direction, it is misled. President Karzai strongly criticized the plan saying that it "will only separate people" , specifically referencing the Pushtun tribe, which inhabit both sides of the border. Even though this new initiative reflects the government of Pakistan dedication to helping Afghanistan and its allies, it is not nearly enough.

The Islamic country of Pakistan has been placed in an interesting position as modern terrorism has spread. On one side, the country wishes to gain legitimacy throughout the international community by its willingness to combat terrorism. On the other, they still have strong sympathies with various militant groups. In order to have peace, the Pakistani government could do several things that woul help reduce tensions and possibly even end hostilities. The first is to obviously cut all ties with militant groups such as the Taliban and al Qaeda. They would also need to either heavily reform or completely do away with the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), which has been linked to terrorist activity . The next thing to do would be for Pakistan to exert its large army (550,000 soldiers ) in tribal areas such as Chitral and Quetta to gain more control. The final and most important change they could make would be to better coordinate their counter-terrorist operations with other nations, specifically Afghanistan. By accomplishing these goals, Pakistan could take a major step in stopping terrorism. The question, though, is if they want to.

The current conflicts in and around the Middle East have provided Pakistan with a difficult decision: to what extent should they pursue the "global war on terrorism"? So far, the Pakistani government has taken a fairly neutral approach, not willing to break ties with either the West or local militants. Time, however, is running out, and they must soon choose a side to prevent the collapse of their own country. It is this choice that will decide the fate of Pakistan for years to come.

Bibliography

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