Pakistan Conflict Monitor

Pakistan, NATO Strengthen Political Framework

Pakistan, Nato to Strengthen Political Framework, DAWN, 21 July 2010

EXCERPT: "Pakistan and Nato on Wednesday agreed to initiate work on strengthening the political framework besides their ongoing military to military cooperation. Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Secretary-General of Nato Anders Fogh Rasmussen at a joint press conference following a round of talks vowed to further expand their political cooperation. Qureshi said Pakistan and Nato will continue to work as close partners for the stability of the region and to achieve shared objectives. 'Pakistan and Nato enjoy an important relationship and intend to build upon it...it goes beyond Afghanistan,' he added. The Nato Secretary-General said the alliance sees Pakistan as an important player in the region and appreciates what it has done to achieve regional peace and stability. He commended Pakistan's operations in the tribal belt and its efforts to improve the overall security situation. He mentioned the tripartite arrangement with Nato and said it would encourage Pakistan to continue with it. He was also appreciative of the recently inked Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA) and said 'it will promote peace and stability in the region and lead to economic development for mutual benefit of all countries of the region.'"

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Related articles:
NATO chief praises Pakistan's regional role, AlertNet, 21 July 2010
NATO not to leave Afghanistan prematurely: Secretary General, China View, 21 July 2010
Zardari hails NATO’s intended support for training counter-terrorism units, Associated Press of Pakistan [government operated], 21 July 2010

Related posts:
EU, NATO seek better ties with Pakistan, 4 June 2010
US praises Pakistan's "excellent cooperation"; security pledge made, 19 May 2010
Mobilizing NATO for Afghanistan and Pakistan, 23 February 2010
NATO, Pakistan pursue closer relations, 4 February 2010
Prioritize Pakistan: NATO Parliamentary Assembly, 27 November 2009

US Gives $500M in Development Projects to Gain Public Trust

Pakistan Leaders Praise Aid Promises, but Public is Wary, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2010

EXCERPT: "U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday unveiled development projects for Pakistan ranging from hydroelectric dams to hospital makeovers in hopes of reversing Pakistani perceptions that American officials view the nation through the prism of fighting terrorism while ignoring some of its most serious needs. [...] The Obama administration has been working to dispel Pakistan's deep mistrust of the U.S., a wariness rooted in how Washington treated Pakistan in the years after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1988-89. During Moscow's occupation of Afghanistan, the U.S. and Pakistan teamed up to support mujahedin fighters against Soviet troops. But after the Soviets left, U.S. attention to the region dissipated. During the second Bush administration, the bulk of the billions of dollars in aid that Washington channeled to Pakistan went to the country's military and to anti-terrorism efforts, while Pakistan's economic and social ills were largely ignored. [...] Nevertheless, the Pakistani public is likely to remain wary of Washington's intentions, in part because Pakistani society still thrives on webs of conspiracy theories that cast doubt and skepticism on the U.S. actions in the region."

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Related articles:
U.S. hopes Afghanistan-Pakistan trade deal boosts cooperation in war effort, The Washington Post, 19 July 2010
Clinton chairs Pakistan dialogue, Al Jazeera, 19 July 2010
Plots in Pakistan's press, Foreign Policy // The AfPak Channel, 15 July 2010

Related posts:
Pakistan in the danger zone: A tenuous US-Pakistan relationship, 29 June 2010
No move to block US aid to Pakistan: Holbrooke, 12 May 2010
Dissenting views on disbursement of US aid to Pakistani organizations, 16 April 2010
Inadequate international aid funding jeopardizes UN humanitarian projects, 12 April 2010
US unveils civilian strategy for Afghanistan, Pakistan, 22 January 2010

The Missing Dimension of Pakistan’s Counterinsurgency Policy

The Missing Dimension of Pakistan’s Counterinsurgency Policy, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10 July 2010

EXCERPT: "The continued military operations against the Taliban, their supporters, and Al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan's tribal and settled regions have regularly shifted from one area to another over the past few years. But a decisive victory against the militants still seems to be no more than wishful thinking, as the latter continuously change positions and open new bases as soon as they are dislodged from their previous ones. Clearly, the so-called war on terror in Pakistan has only multiplied the despair of the already frustrated, impoverished, neglected, and dispossessed people of the tribal areas who straddle the ill-defined border region with Afghanistan. And even more insulting to these people is the fact that this war seems to have turned into little more than a public-relations numbers game with no chance of bringing any positive results. [...] The military’s scattershot security operations over the last eight years have not produced results because they have not been backed by a serious political strategy of development projects in the cleared districts."

Read the full story.

Related articles:
IDPs reluctant to return, IRIN News, 11 July 2010
PM decries lack of international help, DAWN, 7 July 2010

Related posts:
Border areas show signs of insecurity despite claims of progress, 9 July 2010
Army, tribal leaders offer conflicting views on reconstruction progress, 8 July 2010
Taliban regroup in areas thought secure, 24 June 2010
Locals fear militant comeback after army declares Orakzai "victory", 14 June 2010
Overview: What have Pakistani offensives achieved?, 27 April 2010

Army, Tribal Leaders Offer Conflicting Views on Reconstruction Progress

Army Working Towards Development of S Waziristan, The Associated Press of Pakistan via The Express Tribune, 8 July 2010

EXCERPT: "[...] In addition to completing scores of multi-purposes projects in South Waziristan by Pakistan army, developmental schemes on various sectors including education, health, communication and water are underway in South Waziristan. [...] Malik Aman Khan and Malik Allah Yar Khan on behalf of tribal people on this occasion thanked the army chief for initiating a number of projects in South Waziristan and highly appreciated the army’s efforts for establishing the girls’ college and the roads projects, which was their decade-old demand.  [...] They assured full support to Pak Army in their future endeavours and vowed to fight alongside the military for the defence of the country."

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Ahmadzai Tribe Asked to Expel Militants or Face Action, The News International, 8 July 2010

EXCERPT: "General Officer Commanding (GOC) Kohat Maj-Gen Rizwan on Tuesday asked the Ahmadzai tribal jirga in Wana to expel foreign fighters, Punjabi Taliban and Mahsud militants from the area or else the government would take action against them. [...] Tribal sources said Maj-Gen Rizwan reminded the jirga members their 2007 peace accord in which they had promised not to shelter to foreigners in the area. He said the government and the military leadership was satisfied with exemplary peaceful environment in the areas inhabited by the Ahmadzai Wazir people but some unwanted elements were now adamant to damage this peace and push them into trouble. [...] Malik Ajmal Khan [tribal elder] told the jirga that the Ahmadzai Wazir people always supported the government in troubled times and rendered sacrifices but the government never fulfilled its promises of development projects for their areas."

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Related articles:
Situation in SWA deteriorating gradually, The News International, 8 July 2010
Majority of reconstructive work complete in S. Waziristan: Officials, The Express Tribune, 7 July 2010
Militants wiped out from South Waziristan: Army, The Express Tribune, 1 July 2010

Related posts:
Security forces fail to stop influx of militants in S. Waziristan: Jirga, 6 July 2010
Al-Qaeda commander killed in S. Waziristan drone strike, 30 June 2010
Humanitarian access still a challenge: Experts, 14 May 2010
More troops needed as casualties mount in S. Waziristan: Analysts, 5 May 2010
Despite army's assurances, tribal leaders reluctant to return, 23 April 2010

Islamic Charities and Human Security in Pakistan

Islamic Charities and Human Security in Pakistan, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, 12 May 2010

EXCERPT: "Pakistan, insists Christopher Candland, is neither a failed nor a failing state. Key institutions—such as the military, judiciary, and legislature—are all strong and growing even stronger. However, the Pakistani state is failing to provide basic services to its 180-million strong population—one in which, according to Candland, 32 percent subsist below the poverty line and more than 65 percent 'struggle to survive' on or below $2 a day. Speaking at a May 12 Asia Program event, Candland, a 2009-2010 Woodrow Wilson Center Fellow, argued that Pakistan’s Islamic welfare associations—charitable organizations motivated both operationally and financially by the Muslim faith—play an important role in providing for the country's most needy. In fact, these charities make a major contribution to Pakistanis' human security (a term Candland described as 'the capacity of the individual to protect oneself from harm,' which requires access to quality health care and education). [...] Candland described three categories of Islamic welfare associations in Pakistan. One is state-based. [...] The second category of Pakistani Islamic charities is partisan. It is comprised of both Islamic political parties (such as the Jamaat-i-Islami) and political parties that feature Islamic welfare systems. [...] While these partisan associations mainly focus on education, Candland stated that the third category of Islamic charities—nonpartisan associations—mostly emphasize health care."

Read the full summary.
Watch the video of the event.

Related articles:
Is Pakistan a failed state? No., Foreign Policy // The AfPak Channel, 24 June 2010
Pakistan: The Lost Generation - Fixing Pakistan's Schools [article & video], PBS // Frontline, 23 February 2010

Related posts:
Beyond madrasas: Assessing the links between education and militancy in Pakistan, 23 June 2010
New controls on militant charities stifle Eid fundraiser, 8 December 2009
Hardline Pakistani schools a draw for foreigners, 14 December 2009
Lack of basic education fuels rise in Taliban, extremism, 9 November 2009
Education system and links to extremism, 3 November 2009

Beyond Madrasas: Assessing the Links Between Education and Militancy in Pakistan

Beyond Madrasas: Assessing the Links Between Education and Militancy in Pakistan, The Brookings Institution, June 2010

EXCERPT: "Increasing educational attainment is likely to reduce conflict risk, especially in countries like Pakistan that have very low levels of primary and secondary school enrollment. Education quality, relevance and content also have a role to play in mitigating violence. Education reform must therefore be a higher priority for all stakeholders interested in a more peaceful and stable Pakistan. [...] The price of ignoring Pakistan’s education challenges is simply too great in a country where half the population is under the age of 17. There has been much debate concerning the roots of militancy in Pakistan, and multiple factors clearly come into play. One risk factor that has attracted much attention both inside Pakistan and abroad is the dismal state of the national education sector. Despite recent progress, current school attainment and literacy levels remain strikingly low, as does education spending. The Pakistani education sector, like much of the country’s public infrastructure, has been in decline over recent decades."

Read the full overview.
Read the full report [pdf].

Related articles:
Military offensive not needed in South Punjab, says IG Pak Punjab, SIfy News, 23 June 2010
Resuscitating a dying project, The News International, 23 June 2010
US report ties militancy to Pakistan school woes, Reuters, 21 June 2010

Related posts:
Taliban brainwashing kids into killers: Military, 5 January 2010
Hardline Pakistani schools a draw for foreigners, 14 December 2009
The Taliban's war on schoolchildren, 4 December 2009
Lack of basic education fuels rise in Taliban, extremism, 9 November 2009
Education system and links to extremism, 3 November 2009

UK's AfPak Envoy Quits; Hague Seeks to Deepen Pakistan Ties

UK Special Envoy to Afghanistan Who Called for Talks with Taliban Quits, The Guardian, 21 June 2010

EXCERPT: "Britain's special envoy to Afghanistan, known for his scepticism about the western war effort and his support for peace talks with the Taliban, has stepped down just a month before a critical international conference in Kabul. [...] Cowper-Coles, who also had Pakistan in his remit as special envoy, clashed in recent months with senior Nato and US officials over his insistence that the military-driven counter-insurgency effort was headed for failure, and that talks with the Taliban should be prioritised."

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Hague Seeks to Deepen Pakistan Ties, AFP, 23 June 2010

EXCERPT: "Foreign Secretary William Hague pledged on Wednesday to deepen strategic relations with Pakistan as he paid his first visit to Islamabad since the coalition government took power. 'We are keen to deepen the UK-Pakistan strategic dialogue,' the Conservative politician told a news conference, without elaborating. The previous Labour government said that 75 percent of extremist plots affecting Britain - which is home to an estimated one million people of Pakistani descent - have links to Pakistan. Hague paid tribute to the 'enormous sacrifices' made by Pakistan in the widening fight against Islamist militants in the northwest region bordering Afghanistan, where British troops are locked in a war against the Taliban. 'Many thousands of soldiers in Pakistan have lost their lives in battling against violent extremism, and so I think that this must be understood all over the world,' he said. [...] He refused to comment when asked if the possible departure of the US commander of international forces in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, could be a setback for NATO efforts in the war-torn country."

Read the full story.

Related articles:
Gilani hopes Pak-UK relations to attain new heights under new British govt, The Associated Press of Pakistan, 23 June 2010
Band aid for a wounded city, The Express Tribune, 23 June 2010

Related posts:
Afghanistan, Pakistan get higher priority at DfID, 26 May 2010
UK to provide £665 million in aid over four years, 9 April 2010
UK to help rebuild conflict affected border areas, 9 March 2010
Britain says Pakistan aid rises despite crunch, 21 January 2010
Pakistan must do more: UK, 30 November 2009

Relief Agencies Urge Pakistan Army to Agree to New Aid Rules

Relief Agencies Urge Pakistan Army to Agree New Aid Rules, AlertNet, 9 June 2010

EXCERPT: "Aid agencies in Pakistan have drawn up guidelines for their relationship with the military to protect their neutrality and enable them to reach civilians caught up in the army's operations against the Taliban. For over a year, the United Nations, together with scores of relief groups, has been providing aid to more than 3 million people displaced by fighting as the military moves to root out al-Qaeda-linked insurgents in Pakistan's northwest. But aid workers say the response has been beset by challenges, including the denial of access to conflict zones like the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) along the Afghan border, where many civilians are fleeing their homes. Others have voiced concerns that their impartiality is being compromised by the dominance of the Pakistani army, which is heavily involved in humanitarian activities. 'At the start of the emergency last year, our first priority was to respond to the needs on the ground due to the scale and speed of those who were fleeing the fighting,' said Manuel Bessler, head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Pakistan. [...] 'We do need better coordination and so together with the rest of the humanitarian community, we have drafted a set of guidelines which we have presented to the Pakistani army, and we hope that we can reach agreement and improve the effectiveness and reach of humanitarian response.'"

Read the full story.

Related articles:
Major increase in development fund for FATA, The Express Tribune, 10 June 2010
UN: Aid program in Pakistan under threat, VOA News, 17 May 2010

Related posts:
Pakistan displacement figures for 2009 at record high: Report, 17 May 2010
Returnees' situation dire amid volatile security situation, 3 May 2010
More than 200,000 flee violence in tribal regions, 9 April 2010
Humanitarian access still a challenge: Expert, 14 May 2010
Displacement crisis far from over: UN, 7 January 2010

EU, NATO Seek Better Ties with Pakistan

EU Promises Pakistan Cooperation, but Free Trade to Wait, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 4 June 2010

EXCERPT: "Pakistan and the European Union have promised to step up cooperation in areas ranging from security to energy during a summit in Brussels. But Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani failed to make noticeable headway on Pakistan's chief aim - securing free trade with the bloc. [...] 'Developments in Pakistan have a direct influence on Europe and in the whole world. Therefore it is in our own interest to be constructively engaged with Pakistan,' noted the summit's host, Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the Council of the European Union. Van Rompuy also observed that the EU is home to roughly a million people of Pakistani origin. [...] The EU today also said it would contribute 69 million euros ($83 million) to the Malakand Fund for the rehabilitation of conflict areas. [...] Although the EU and Pakistan also discussed security cooperation, the bloc's contribution remains limited to civilian matters - training law enforcement officials, assisting in criminal justice reforms, and contributing to 'counter-radicalization' measures. [...] Also in Brussels, at NATO headquarters, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen assured the Pakistani leader there would be no precipitate withdrawal from Afghanistan. 'I have stressed to the prime minister, and through him to the Pakistani people, NATO will stay in Afghanistan as long as it takes to finish our job, there should be no misunderstanding about that,' Rasmussen said."

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Related articles:
NATO leader says alliance stands ready to assist Pakistan, ChinaView, 4 June 2010
NATO, Pakistan seek to boost non-military ties, AFP, 4 June 2010
Sarkozy queried over Pakistan arms cash, BBC News, 4 June 2010
Spain, Pakistan pledge to fight against terrorism, AFP, 2 June 2010

Related posts:
Mobilizing NATO for Afghanistan and Pakistan, 23 February 2010
NATO, Pakistan pursue closer relations, 4 February 2010
NATO Afghan convoy attacked in Karachi, 28 January 2010
European Union aid to Pakistan: Steadily on the rise, 15 December 2009
EU plans to strengthen action in Afghanistan and Pakistan, 27 October 2009
Prioritize Pakistan: NATO Parliamentary Assembly, 27 November 2009

Govt to Invest in Border Areas to Tackle Militancy

Pakistan to Invest in Taliban Stronghold to Tackle Militancy, BusinessWeek, 26 May 2010

EXCERPT: "Pakistan, which has spent more than $35 billion fighting terrorism since 2001, plans to build roads and hospitals in the Afghan border regions in a bid to stem support for Islamic militants and bolster the local economy. Militancy and regional autonomy meant the government spent less than a fifth of its budget in the first half of this year in the northwest where the Taliban finds the most recruits. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has said his strategy for fighting extremism includes building houses and schools in the impoverished districts. 'The roads made by the British government before partition are the only roads in the tribal areas,' said Ayaz Khan Wazir, former ambassador of Pakistan to Qatar and a native of South Waziristan. 'In 63 years, the government hasn’t built a single major hospital, a single factory or a single communication system.' [...] Militancy and insurgency are the main hurdles in the completion of development schemes, Khan said. The government plans to improve security arrangements, become more prompt in selecting sites for projects and improve monitoring, according to the statement."

Read the full story.

Related articles:
Reconstruction in Malakand, Bajaur, Daily Times, 31 May 2010
UN urged to set up industrial zones in tribal areas, DAWN, 22 May 2010

Related posts:
Humanitarian access still a challenge: Experts, 14 May 2010
Pakistan urges broader scope for G8 border initiative, 10 May 2010
Militancy and conflict across the FATA and NWFP, 19 April 2010
Inadequate international aid funding jeopardizes UN humanitarian projects, 12 April 2010
G8 announces project to develop Afghanistan-Pakistan border, 30 March 2010
Swat residents struggle as reconstruction slow to take off, 15 February 2010