Posted on Feb 17, 2021
CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
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We know Pakistan is a major hub of terrorism, both regional and global then, why is the international community not taking actions against Pakistan; why is the international community sleeping?
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SFC Melvin Brandenburg
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It's hard to push around a nation with nukes.
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CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
3 y
Pakistan nukes are old and of Chinese origins. CPEC will enhance this stockpile, if required.
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SFC Melvin Brandenburg
SFC Melvin Brandenburg
3 y
CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana - Do you really think people with nukes, who have a nuclear adversary on their border, will cede control of their insurance policy?
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CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
3 y
SFC Melvin Brandenburg, Pakistan can't afford to distance itself from China because China owns Pakistan, which has been held with China till those premium high-interest loans are repaid, in full. Pakistan doesn't have the ability to repay China and China understands this fact, which is why China chose Pakistan as its prey and captured it. Pakistan went to the OAC and Saudi Arabia and the UAE, collectively, pledged $6B in aid to Pakistan. However, Pakistan could not live up to the high standards expected by the OAC and the UAE and Saudi Arabia have recalled the $6B from Pakistan. In order to pay its mountains of debts, Pakistan is selling the Founder's Park in the name of Jinnah's sister in Pakistan; Imran Khan is also mulling renting the Park for $5 million per month to offset the national deficit. The IMF and the World Bank have refused loans to offset Pakistani debt to China. The U.S. has also put breaks on the $750 Million per annum that fueled the Pakistani Terror Apparatus operating from Pakistan's soil and trained by Pakistan's ISI. Where will Pakistan go from here? I welcome your opinions.
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SSgt Christophe Murphy
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I don't think anyone is sleeping on it but the politics are sticky. It's sticky because if you poke one Muslim country you risk provoking all of them out of a sense of unity. Similar to how Venezuela unites Central and South American Countries for Strength. Everyone knows Pakistan is basically a hallway to go through undetected. But if you hassle them you also risk creating tension with Jordan, Syria, Iran, etc, etc.
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SPC David S.
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Edited 3 y ago
To start the terrorism in P'stan started way back in 1979. Pakistan's military, American CIA and other western intelligence agencies where supporting A'stan's mujahideen in fighting Russia. So we more or less gave the stick to terrorist and then showed them how to use it. Now we are cleaning up the mess we and others helped to create. This use of strategic terrorism has devolved into a number of groups. Currently Pakistan hosts five broad types of Islamist terrorist groups – globally oriented terrorists, Afghanistan-oriented, India- and Kashmir-oriented, sectarian and domestic terrorists. So the efforts to clean it up have been complicated as some the groups extend P'stan's borders. This using of terror as a “strategic asset” has its own inherent dangers but considering what is being asked unsavory characters with alternative motives is part of the dynamics. Added to the this is a layer of international mistrust with neighboring states in the region. Within P'stan there are some 45 active terrorist groups some of which are getting assistance from P'stan's military and intelligence. This is the were I feel it becomes a more sensitive conversation. To your point I feel the international community is simply giving all parties involved the space to come to an agreement in how the region will police terrorism now and in its future as its rather clear the idea of any terrorist group being defined as a strategic asset is a flawed concept. Osama bin Laden if nothing else should serve as a warning for anyone looking to leverage any strategic policies via a terrorist organization. They will bite off the hands that feed them.

https://www.satp.org/terrorist-groups/pakistan
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CPT Lawrence Cable
CPT Lawrence Cable
3 y
A couple of comments. Pakistan was created as an Islamic State and even though most of the Elite were Westernized, they still supported fundamentalist group throughout the country. The method we chose to fund the Afghans after the Soviet Invasion was to funnel that support through the Pakistan Government, which meant the ISI. After the fall of the Soviets, the US just left, leaving the various groups to fight it out. That is the event that caused the formation of the Taliban and the ISI say a way to extend Pakistan's influence into the region. Bin Laden's group was there since the Soviet Invasion, but had remained outside of CIA money/supplies while remaining on good terms with ISI, and later, a supporter and trainer for the Taliban.
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SPC David S.
SPC David S.
3 y
Yes the power vacuum created after the super powers had enough of the proxy war was a big part of how this all started however the use of strategic terrorism was due to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) understanding the opportunity at hand in how to use these groups and that was gleaned from watching the CIA in country. As well there were the coups in A'stan that set much if not all of this in motion.

How that transpired is a history lesson that goes all the way back to when Persia invaded. I find it all fascinating and if one cares to look and understand why something has happened in this world there is a clear path of retrospective history in how one event leads to and shapes the next event and so on. With A'stan many kings have chewed on that dirt with most having little success. It is truly the graveyard of empires.
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CPT Lawrence Cable
CPT Lawrence Cable
3 y
SPC David S. - The reality is that a number of empires conquered and occupied strategic parts of Afghanistan since before Alexander the Great. The issue has always been the expense of keeping troops in a place that even today is out in BFE. The original invasions were to secure the trade routes from East to West, as those became less important, so did the reason to pay for the expense of occupying the country. To be real about it, if the Soviets hadn't invaded and made it a Cold War issue, which lead to the conditions that let the Taliban take over and turned it into an international training ground for Islamic terrorist, most of the world wouldn't be able to find Afghanistan on the Map.
Pakistan exploited all of these troubles to gain a solid influence in the area through support of the Pastun/Taliban, while providing covert support of terrorist groups outside of Pakistan/India. This was known from the beginning and Pakistan was on the watch list off and on for decades. A lot of 9/11 paths lead back to Pakistan and my very cynical opinion is that a small scale nuclear device over Islamabad would have solved a lot of problems immediately. OTOH, not the on "Friendly" Islamic country with blood on their hands. How many of the 9/11 terrorist were Saudi? Where did Al Queda's money originate.
Back when I was still in I tried to explain that there was no difference substantial difference between the Sunni's and the "Radical" Shiites of Iran. Both are by design fundamentalist religions and the only difference between Saudi Arabia and Iran is that the Saudis have a financial interest in keeping the US somewhat Happy.

Captain's cynicism for the day.
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SPC David S.
SPC David S.
3 y
Totally agree with dynamics being hard to believe at times. OBL kidnaping Iranians to get family members released, Saudi Royal family linked to terrorist funding and the inconvenient but willingness of Sunni and Shite working together. In regards to the historical timeline in the 1960's and 1970's the Saudi royal family made a deal with the devil and offered to sponsor the teaching of Wahhabist clerics in exchange for their support of the royal family's rule. This event is often missed by those looking to understand how the region become a hotbed for terrorist. As part of the deal prominent members of the Saudi royal family, including Prince Naif, Saudi Arabia's Interior Minister and anti-terror czar, set up charities that funneled money toward the Wahhabi madras schools throughout the Middle East and "Pakistan" making these areas hotbeds of anti-American sentiment and extremism. This is the result of the man who was in charge of fighting terrorism in Saudi Arabia. He is on record stating that Zionists were responsible for 9/11 and that Saudi citizens could not have been involved in the attack, even though we know that 15 of the 19 were Saudi citizens. What is more telling is after the bombing of Khobar Towers in 1998 that killed 19 Americans, Naif single-handedly prevented the trial of 13 Saudis indicted for the crime and this is our biggest ally in the region. I really feel this Saudi seed that was planted in P'stan is what sparked the current radical Islamic ideologies merely being stoked by Russia's invasion.

With the blessing of both the Saudi and US governments the enlisting of tens of thousands of Saudi youth into the Afghan Jihad took place. These youths, graduates of the Saudi education system, adopted the Wahhabi academic discourse. Under focused leaders who were extremely successful in integrating Wahhabism with Qutbism, this became the dominant academic discourse amongst the Jihadi youth in Afghanistan. As a result the modern concept of a global jihad was realized in A'stan which resulted in Russia leaving. I feel this set the framework for ISIS and the likes in how to globally transform a radical ideology into action. Very fascinating stuff for any foreign policy and history buffs.

https://www.globalpolicyjournal.com/blog/06/07/2017/intersection-wahhabism-and-jihad
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