U.S. efforts fail to convince Pakistan's top general to target Taliban

[unhappycamper]

Pakistans newly appointed Army Chief Gen. Ashfaq Kayani arrives for a change of command ceremony in Rawalpindi, Pakistan on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007.


U.S. efforts fail to convince Pakistan's top general to target Taliban
By Karin Brulliard and Karen DeYoung
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, December 31, 2010; 8:37 PM

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN - Countless U.S. officials in recent years have lectured and listened to Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, the man many view as the most powerful in Pakistan. They have drunk tea and played golf with him, feted him and flown with him in helicopters.

But they have yet to persuade him to undertake what the Obama administration's recent strategy review concluded is a key to success in the Afghan war - the elimination of havens inside Pakistan where the Taliban plots and stages attacks on coalition troops in Afghanistan.

Kayani, who as Pakistan's army chief has more direct say over the country's security strategy than its president or prime minister, has resisted personal appeals from President Obama, U.S. military commanders and senior diplomats. Recent U.S. intelligence estimates have concluded that he is unlikely to change his mind anytime soon. Despite the entreaties, officials say, Kayani doesn't trust U.S. motivations and is hedging his bets in case the American strategy for Afghanistan fails.

In many ways, Kayani is the personification of the vexing problem posed by Pakistan. Like the influential military establishment he represents, he views Afghanistan on a timeline stretching far beyond the U.S. withdrawal, which is slated to begin this summer. While the Obama administration sees the insurgents as an enemy force to be defeated as quickly and directly as possible, Pakistan has long regarded them as useful proxies in protecting its western flank from inroads by India, its historical adversary.

"Kayani wants to talk about the end state in South Asia," said one of several Obama administration officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity about the sensitive relationship. U.S. generals, the official said, "want to talk about the next drone attacks."

[xchrom]

1. somebody is being played for a fool - and it isn't kayani. nt

[OregonBlue]

2. The military runs Pakistan.

[MisterP]

3. "escalate the conflict into a pan-national civil war so you can get a 5-point ratings bump because

you're giving the appearance of closing the barn door after the horses left? SURE, I'll get right on it!"