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May 25, 2013
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 India’s Role in the Afghan DramaPosted on Aug 11, 2008When large and powerful countries intervene in the affairs of smaller countries, they take for granted that they are, or should be—and certainly could be—in control. The reverse is often true. The smaller country is using the bigger one in its own game, which is far more important to it, and which it knows far more about. In the war with the Taliban in Afghanistan, not much is being said about India. What has India to do with it? The Indians and Pakistanis are engaged in a competition to dominate or control the new Afghanistan after the U.S. is gone—a departure, they know, which sooner or later will arrive. India and Pakistan have been at war three times since the partition of India created Pakistan and placed Kashmir—a Muslim state—under Indian rule. The two have been fighting over Kashmir, openly or secretly, ever since. Pakistan, the smaller and less populous state, is vulnerable to India, which has nuclear weapons, which it tested in May 1998, prompting Pakistan to reveal its own nuclear arms with six tests of its own. One of George W. Bush’s boasts in foreign policy is that he has made India, longtime critic of America, into a friend by giving it an unprecedented bilateral nuclear arrangement with the U.S., and by touting India as China’s democratic challenger in Asia. Advertisement Islamabad considers this an effort to strategically outflank and encircle Pakistan. A Taliban-dominated Afghanistan was, before 2001, thought by Pakistani leaders to provide them strategic depth. India has also been one of the main sources of aid for the U.S.-supported Afghan government. President Hamid Karzai has been on a visit to New Delhi, where he received $450 million to add to the $750 million already promised by India. Indian companies and workers are active in highway-building and hydroelectric projects in Afghanistan. On July 7, a car-bomb attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul killed more than 50, including two Indian diplomats. The Afghan government has accused Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency of being responsible, which Pakistan denies. It is well known that the powerful Pakistan military intelligence service was deeply involved with the United States in organizing and supporting the mujahedeen who drove the Russian army out of Afghanistan in 1989, and subsequently sponsored the Taliban movement, which took power. The seriously deteriorating military situation in Afghanistan is understood in most of the American press and government as a straightforward matter. The United States ran the Taliban out of Afghanistan in 2001 and installed a new government, which the U.N. approves. While we were in Iraq and not paying attention to Afghanistan, the Taliban came back to that country. Now they have to be defeated again, and the Pakistanis are not cooperating the way they should, since they are America’s allies and Washington has made a big investment in Pakistan. The United States wants action in locating and fighting Taliban sites inside Pakistan’s Tribal Territories, where government authority has always been sketchy and relations with the Pathan tribes politically tricky. The new Pakistan government, formed after popular demonstrations against President Musharraf for his pro-American policies forced a national election earlier this year, has assured Washington that it will create a new paramilitary force to operate in the territories. But the parties elected in February, who now govern Pakistan, want peace negotiations with the tribal forces in the frontier territories and the militants involved with the Taliban. They were elected for that purpose. They are putting pressure on the United States to halt or limit airstrikes in the frontier region, which they claim have a high rate of collateral damage and mistaken targeting of innocent gatherings. The conventional American reaction is the one Barack Obama has announced, presumably having picked it up from hard-nosed military people: If the Pakistanis won’t crush the Taliban bases, we’ll come in and do it ourselves. I am reminded of something a friend of mine, an old soldier from the Second World War’s European campaign, said at the start of the Vietnam War. “Just wait until those little guys in those black pajamas feel the shock of American heavy infantry!” They felt it, they absorbed it; and a decade later my friend conceded that the whole thing had been more complicated than he had thought. Visit William Pfaff’s Web site at www.williampfaff.com. © 2008 Tribune Media Services Inc.  Previous item: McCain Capitalizes on Obama Fatigue Next item: A Family Fight Among Democrats: Health Care New and Improved CommentsIf you have trouble leaving a comment, review this help page. Still having problems? Let us know. If you find yourself moderated, take a moment to review our comment policy. |
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By khaista, October 9, 2009 at 11:54 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
we watch dramas
Report thisBy Atif, September 24, 2008 at 3:21 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
India has 174 million Muslims in India.
Report thisBy SHAMS, August 13, 2008 at 10:48 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
INDIA AND PAKISTAN ARE BEING USED BY THE WESTERN POWERS, SPECIFICALLY USA, BRITIAN AND ISRAEL FOR THEIR OWN POLICIES OF CONTAINING MUSLIMS, RUSSIA AND CHINA.
BOTH THESE SHORTSIGHTED COUNTRIES SHOULD KNOW THAT THEIR IMAGINED FEARS ARE BEING FURTHER EXPOLITED BY THE WESTERN COUNTRIES.
BOTH THESE COUNTRIES SHOULD KNOW BY NOW THAT THE BRITISH LEFT IN THE 40’S WITH THE KASHMIR QUESTION UNRESOLVED, HENCE THE BONE OF CONTENTION AND THEY HAVE BEEN FIGHTING EVER SINCE. GROW UP! THESE 2 COUNTRIES WITH THEY STUPID LEADERSHIP ARE SPENDING UNTOLD AMOUNT OF THEIR NATURAL RESOURCES ON DEFENCE AND ARMANENTS AND FILLING UP THE COFFERS OF THE WEST, ISRAEL, RUSSIA & CHINA.
BOTH THESE COUNTRIES SHOULD LEARN THE FROM IRAN/ IRAQ EXPERIENCE THAT BOTH THESE COUNTRIES FOUGHT A TERRIBLE WAR EACH AGAINST KILLING MILLIONS OF THEIR POPULATION. SEE WHAT HAPPENNED IN THE END. GREEN LIGHT FROM USA, IRAQ INVADED KUWAIT. THEN THE WEST ENTERED THE PICTURE INVASION OF IRAQ, MILLIONS MORE IRAQI’S KILLED AND NOW WMD LIE, 2ND INVASION AND MORE KILLING AND FURTHER DESTRUCTION OF IRAQ AND LOSS OF OIL RESOURCES.
BOTH INDIA AND PAKISTAN SHOULD LEARN THEY ARE PAWNS IN THIS ARENA OF SUPER POWER PLAY. PAKISTAN & AFGANISTAN WAS USED BY USA TO DEFEAT RUSSIA. NOW INDIA IS BEING USED BY USA FOR THIS GREAT ECONOMIC AND NUCLEAR WAR BETWEEN INDIA AND CHINA TO WEAKEN & BANKRUPT BOTH, TO BE THE ONLY WORLD POWER.
BOTH INDIA & PAKISTAN SHOULD GET SMART AND KICK OUT THEIR CORRUPT AND MORALLY /ETHICALLY BANKRUPT POLITICIANS AND LEADERS AND THINK ABOUT THE PEOPLE AND COUNTRY FIRST. REGIONAL PEACE, TRADE, AND COOPERATION SHOULD BE THE PRIORITY. BIG GAME TAMASHAS ARE NOT FOR MORAL AND JUST COUNTRIES. STOP TRYING TO BE LIKE THE WEST BE HAPPY WITH YOUR HUMBLE ORIGIN BE YOURSELF WITH THE TRUE GANDHI & ISLAMIC PRINCIPLE. THIS KIND OF EGOISTICAL AND ARROGANT TRIP IS THE PATH TO YOUR NUCLEAR HOLUCAST AND DESTRUCTION. SHAME ON YOU BOTH AND CHANGE YOUR WAYS.
BOTH THE COUNTRIES HAVE SO MUCH TO OFFER TO THE WORLD. JUST LISTEN TO GANDHI AND JINNAH.
Report thisJUST SAY NO TO INSANITY TO WAR AND KILLING.
By WARIS SHERE, August 12, 2008 at 4:49 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
I concur with the views expressed by William Pfaff. He correctly states that powerful countries intervene in the affairs of weaker countries. Very little has been said about India’s invovement in the war with the Taliban in Afghanistan. President George Bush has given India an unprecedented bilateral nuclear arrangement with the U.S. For several years, India was a critic of America. Presently, Indian diplomacy is indeed active in Central Asia. In its seventh decade after independence, India today stands at a crossroads in its relations with the rest of the world, writes Harsh V. Pant of the Defence Studies Department, Kings College London, in his brilliant book titled “Foreign and Security Policy: India Negotiates Its Rise in the International System”. “Being one of the most powerful economies in the world today gives India clout on the global stage matched only by a few other states. Coupled with highly professional armed forces well-ensconced in a liberal democratic polity, India is emerging as an entity that can decisively shift the global balance of power. As a consequence, the lens through which India has traditionally viewed the rest of the world is increasingly unable to do justice to India’s growing stature in the international system. Flush from its recent economic success and on its way to emerge as a major global player, India today is struggling to define itself, to comprehend not only its power capabilities but also the possibilities and limits of that power.” India has also been one of the main sources of aid for the Afghan government. During his recent vist to New Delhi, President Hamid Karzai received substantial aid in millions of dollars. Indian companies and workers are also very active in highway-building and hydroelectric projects in Afghanistan. India has launched major developmental projects in Afghanistan, which include dollar 109.3 million Salma Dam power project in Herat, envisaged to produce 42 mw of power. India wants to change the face of Afghanistan by rebuilding its shattered economy. Several thousand Indians are working round the clock in Afghanistan to speed up the development process. According to an analyst Indias successes in Afghanistan has stirred up a hornets nest in Islamabad, which has come to believe that India was taking over Afghanistan.
Report thisBy Peter, August 12, 2008 at 12:32 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Post Charlie Wilson and CIA war, Taliban(Pashto Tribals representing 40% of Afghan population) took power in Afghanistan with the backing of Pakistan,and Saudi arabia with Ms. Allbright(or Half-bright)assenting.
Report thisThe Northern Alliance group representing 60% made up of Tajik, Hazara, and Turkmen formed the resistance spearheaded by Ahmed Shah Massod was left with no International support but from India.
3 days before 9-11 he was killed by a suicide bomber.
Post 9-11 and Tora Bora, it was this Northern Alliance who recaptured Afghanistan on the ground, with U.S. air cover, but before U.S.-NATO boots on ground.
At Berlin conference, at the U.S.-Pakistani insistance, Karzai(Pashto) was appointed president as a compromise with Northern Alliance retaining rightful majority in the government.
As of now it is the regrouped Taliban in the Pakistani Tribal areas which is trying to destabilise Afghanistan once again.
India is only providing the huminitarian aid in the form of roads, bridges, communication, education and health.
The security or military assistance is provided by U.S.-NATO and destabilisation by the failed state of Pakistan.
By spencer racing, August 11, 2008 at 11:11 pm Link to this comment
Just for the record. It is a place to read neocon propaganda. Look elsewhere for the facts. India is being run by right wing thugs, who turn a blind eye to atrocities committed by Hindu fascists against minorities in the country. They are backed by the US and Israel who dream of using the huge Indian army as their cannon fodder in that part of the world. Not a word about any of that in the articles on this site. If you want to get a glimpe about what the Indian government is really all about, read Arundati Roy’s writings. She has had a lot to say about the burning alive of muslim women in the streets during the pograms that the Indian government practically sponsors.
Report thisBy cyrena, August 11, 2008 at 11:04 pm Link to this comment
By jackpine savage, August 11 at 7:39 pm
Both sides must consider that the US will hang one of them out to dry.
Or hang both out to dry. At least thats what I would have considered as a previous possibility.
However, what you sum up with here, is the reality..
..Complicated? Yes. But it is most complicated for the US; it is also most complicated by the US. The longer that the US continues to behave like the invincible hegemon, the worse things will be for the world as a whole. You may only go around inflaming the globe for your geo-strategic wishes for as long as you are capable of dousing the flames. That ability is rapidly slipping away.
I dont know about anybody else, but I sure couldnt have said it better. Im not sure of exactly the precise moment that it happened, (or if there ever was one) but the lunacy of the assumption that any person or entity could just go around f#$@king with everybody and not expecting any negative consequences or repercussions is whats gonna kill us all.
Yet the asshole pyromaniacs in DC seem determined to keep lighting them up.
Report thisBy Gus, August 11, 2008 at 10:21 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Indian leadership is meek and only now starting to open up and assert after gain in economic strength.
India doesn’t have a strong mercenary kind of intelligence orgnization(ISI), which pakistan has, was built by CIA to counter soviets.
India has largest number of civillian casuality to terrorist but due to it’s vote bank politics ( esp. left parties), it cannot have even tough anti terrorist laws in it’s own country.
India’s defence spending is less than 2% OF ITS’ GDP, which is lower than even some of the poor countries of SAARC.
With all this India has world’s one fifth population and that includes 2nd largest muslim population (which can be easily brainwashed by jihadis).
India has a real difficult task at hand and all need to appreciate that. Demonizing India will not help ...because India is one of the few hopes with it’s multipolar and secular face democracy. (Which is completely missing in middle east countries and also in China).
Report thisBy jackpine savage, August 11, 2008 at 8:39 pm Link to this comment
A bold move by the Indians, but dangerous because it appears to rely heavily on their new friends in Washington. New friends who may, at this point, have soured on Pakistan but who may well be playing both sides off on each other. Both sides must consider that the US will hang one of them out to dry.
Adding China into the equation further complicates matters…particularly from the Indian point of view if they’re being used as a counter against China. China holds the upper hand against the US (the banker always does) which puts India’s fortune on US-Chinese relations. If those sour, India will find herself hemmed in between two foes.
We could add Russia to all this too. India and Russia have a positive history, but Russia and China have (once again) been moving towards each other…granted, they are somewhat leery of each other.
Complicated? Yes. But it is most complicated for the US; it is also most complicated by the US. The longer that the US continues to behave like the invincible hegemon, the worse things will be for the world as a whole. You may only go around inflaming the globe for your geo-strategic wishes for as long as you are capable of dousing the flames. That ability is rapidly slipping away.
Report thisBy desi, August 11, 2008 at 7:44 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Let me summarize the article for anyone not interested in this crap.
“US can have national interest but India can’t.”
An article talking about India spends more time talking about what pakistan is doing. and ends with US narcism.
Liberal thought same as neo-con B.S.
Some much for progressive website.
Pakistan only exists because US, Saudi Arabia and China. So who interfering in what country. Nixon was against creation of Bangladesh and blamed India for intervention. Now the same bangladesh sends terrorist to India to blow up.
Report thisNo good deed goes unpunished.