by Ralph Peters via Strategika
Pakistan’s military and intelligence leadership—the country’s decisive elements—view the United States as a danger to be managed and a resource to be exploited. Its approach to bilateral relations is predicated on three things: The (correct) belief that U.S. interlocutors do not understand the region; the conviction that, eventually, the U.S. will leave Afghanistan; and Pakistan’s need for hegemony over Afghanistan—not only to check India’s strategic moves but, more importantly, to guarantee Pakistan’s internal cohesion.
(Military Times) In Afghanistan, the insurgency’s control over districts remains at its highest level since the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, began receiving district control data in November 2015.
(Stars & Stripes) SIGAR said that the U.S. military continues to keep private other key data that would help gauge the progress of the U.S.’s longest war, now in its 17th year.
Yet again, senior American officials display a stunning level of ignorance about the Islamic State and the Taliban. Elections are antithetical to jihadists' belief of religious rule.
by Bing West via Strategika
Last April, Ambassador Robert D. Blackwill, a distinguished diplomat, summarized American policy toward Pakistan. “Every time a new administration in Washington comes to office,” he said, “they get worried about Pakistan, which has a stockpile of nuclear weapons. The US Secretary of State then visits Pakistan and meets the top leadership.
Taliban Control Remains Unchanged Despite Increased U.S. Military Pressure
By Robert Eatinger, The Cipher Brief: “If a satisfactory supplemental agreement cannot be reached by May 12th, is the president empowered to abandon or withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal?”
Quratulain Fatima and PS Editors examine the state of gender equality in Pakistan ahead of key national elections.