The country has banked on being treated as too dangerous to fail. But this time could be different.
A Pakistani court has ordered the release of a radical anti-U.S. cleric who went to Afghanistan with thousands of volunteers to help the Taliban fight against Americans after the 2001 U.S.-led invasion, a defense lawyer said Tuesday. - Associated Press
Pakistan is being further pushed into China’s embrace as a consequence of the U.S. State Department’s plan to cut military aid to Islamabad, analysts agree. - Defense News
Richard G. Olson writes: While perhaps it is emotionally satisfying to penalize a country that has supported American enemies in Afghanistan for the past 16 years, the [Trump] administration’s approach is unlikely to work. Pakistan has greater leverage over us than many imagine. - New York Times
The White House announced Monday that Vice President Mike Pence will embark on his Middle East tour next week. Initially set for December, the visit was delayed amid a close vote on tax reform in Congress and widespread protests that swept the region following President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Pence is set to visit Egypt, Jordan and Israel from Jan. 20 to Jan. 23. He is expected to meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Pence will discuss “ways to work together to fight terrorism and improve our national security” with the three leaders, according to spokeswoman Alyssa Farah.
Read More
In recent months there has been a rapprochement between Iran and Hamas, after approximately three years of difficulties caused by Hamas' reservations regarding the Syrian regime and the removal of the movement's offices from Syria...
Read moreFull document in PDF format
Trump made the comments on Jan. 1 in a scathing tweet. The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools. They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!
It is unclear what sparked Trump’s harsh words toward Pakistan. Trump’s comments came just two days after Hafiz Seed, the leader of terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba and its charitable front, Jamaat-ud-Dawa, was photographed with Walid Abu Ali, the ambassador for the Palestinian government, at a conference on Palestine and Kashmir in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi [photograph below].
The Palestinian government recalled Ali after the photograph was disseminated and described the meeting as a “mistake.” From Dawn: “… the [Palestinian] Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates considered the participation of our ambassador in Pakistan in a mass rally in solidarity with Jerusalem, held […] in the presence of individuals accused of supporting terrorism is an unintended mistake, but not justified.”
Palestinian ambassador Walid Abu Ali (left) chats with Lashkar-e-Taiba emir Hafiz Saeed. Saeed is listed by the US government as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist and his Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jamaat-ud-Dawa are listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. Saeed is allied with both the Taliban and al Qaeda, and is responsible for multiple terrorist attacks in India and Afghanistan.
In December, Pakistan released Saeed from house arrest, much to the dismay of the US government. Pakistan’s duplicity with terrorist groups and its relationship with the US is well documented [see Pakistan: Friend or Foe in the Fight Against Terrorism?].
The Trump administration, like the Bush and Obama administrations before it, has attempted to flatter and cajole Pakistan into changing its stripes and ending its special relationship with jihadist groups such as the Afghan Taliban, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Harakat-ul-Mujahideen.
The Pakistani government has continued to insist its resolve to fight against terrorists “is unmatched in the world” while denouncing the designation of established terrorist groups like Hizbul Mujahideen.
The Trump administration, which has redoubled efforts to defeat the Afghan Taliban, appears to have quickly tired of Pakistan’s double dealing. There are numerous options for the administration to punish Pakistan, including trade, economic and travel restrictions, diplomatic demarches, and military options.
If Trump is truly serious about hitting back at Pakistan, expect the US to ramp up drone strikes against jihadists, and not just in the tribal areas. Baluchistan province, where the last emir of the Taliban was killed, remains the prime support zone for the Afghan Taliban.
https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2018/01/trump-blasts-pakistan-for-its-lies-deceit.php