The new Pakistani government under the leadership of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will review Pakistan’s role in the US-led war against terror. Deputy US Secretary of State John Negroponte and Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher have arrived in Pakistan to hold parleys with the new Pakistani government and about ensuring their cooperation in the battle against Al Qaida and Taliban.
Since USA launched its war against the combined forces of the Al Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001, Pervez Musharraf, the military dictator of Pakistan, had supported the US-led NATO forces. With a truly representative parliament coming to power, the new Pakistani administration needs to review Musharraf’s anti-terrorism policies before arriving at any decision. However, it is unlikely that the newly elected democratic government would not cooperate with USA in its war against terror as the rise of Islamic terrorism presents a threat to the security and stability of the Pakistani democracy.
Pakistan’s role in the war against terror is steeped in controversy. Afghanistan has repeatedly alleged that elements within the Pakistani military and intelligence are aiding the Taliban in Afghanistan and are turning a blind eye to the Taliban camps in Pakistan. The Pakistani army under Musharraf had increased action against some of the Taliban buildups and particularly against the Uzbek and Tajik foreign groups linked to the Al Qaida and Taliban in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and the Northwest province area but they have not gone against the major Taliban command-and-control centers in Quetta and Peshawar.
Nonetheless, the Taliban leadership is clearly unsettled with the current political change in the country that has brought to power a government that is less controlled by the military.
Source: GulfNews
