P.S. Unfortunately, Professor Asal you have failed to disclose that you received his MA from HEBREW UNIVERSITY, ISRAEL, in 1996.
Pakistanis, who wish to rebut Professor Victor Asal, can e-mail him at :
Dear Professor Asal:
I am disappointed in your lack of academic objectivity in your article about Pakistan and its Nuclear Program. It smacks of a well hidden personal bigotry and a condescending attitude. It also shows, your complete lack of knowledge about the Southwest Asia and the strategic objectives of Pakistan. For your enlightenment, Pakistanis are not a bunch of Yahoos running around yelling,” Jihad! Jihad!” Pakistanis are moderate people, who know that nuclear weapons are not for wars, but a deterrent against wars. Pakistanis live in a very bad neighborhood, where characters like Bin Ladin and Ayman Zawahiri prowl among the 180 million people. Pakistanis face the curse of extremism is a residual gift of the US sponsored “Jihad,” against the Soviet Empire.
BTW, Pakistan Army regulars fighting as “Mujaheddin,” defeated the Soviet Army. I know this because, my brother was a Major and used to train the US sponsored Charlie Wilson’s, “Mujaheddin.” Pakistan lost several thousand people soldiers in that war. What did Pakistan gain in return? Demonization, by people like yourself, who call themselves “Experts,” or “Scholars.” Taliban were also the monster child of the fall of the Soviet empire.
Pakistan is a country whose area almost equals that of Texas and Oklahoma combined. It has a population of 180 million people. It has a Nuclear and ICBM-laced 1 million man Indian Army on its border. It has Indian Vishwa Hindu Parishad(VHP) and Rashtriya Sevak Sangh (RSS) fanatics, whose emblem is a Swastika, running around asking for a Final Solution of Pakistan. It has “friends” like yourself, who also want it wiped off the map, because of some imaginary threat to a Israel. Pakistan is a nation born out of a desire of Abrahamic people to free themselves from cow-worshipping, urine drinking, casteism-apartheid,based and female infanticide practicing animistic cult called Hinduism. Can you tell me how many Indians have died in Afghanistan fighting the War on Terror? Pakistanis have died trying to save US soldiers in somalia and Afghanistan. So there!
Pakistan has a very powerful and hostile country India next door. Its people face imminent danger every day of their life. Because, Pakistanis die as a blow back of irresponsible behavior of intellectuals, who push US public opinion to go to war in far flung nations like Afghanistan. However, as a word of caution, you’re right, Pakistan is a nuclear state, it will use its Samsons option , if cornered to a point of destruction.
Who is responsible for this situation created by this War on Terror? The virulent creations of War on Terror, the Taliban are infiltrating across its border from Afghanistan. These are lunatic Jihadi corn-pones, are a major export of a failed state called Afghanistan. Pakistan has lost 30,000 soldiers and civilians in this War on Terror. But, ungrateful “friends” never take a break from running the juggernaut of malicious propaganda. This is no way to win the hearts and minds of people. And that is also an answer to the question, “why do they hate us?” Such articles make the situation worse for people like myself, who are working hard to bring education. clean drinking water, and other basic needs for normal human development. They provide fodder for nihilists and forces of darkness. Such articles also provide a justification or raison d’etre for fanatics and fundamentalists and may also put our brave soldiers lives in Afghanistan in jeopardy.
Currently, a civilian government based on democratic principles, is trying very hard (along with the support of the military) to transition smoothly to a democratic electoral process. However, such articles do not make their work easier. Most Pakistanis know very little about Israel and do not even know that whether its a friend or an enemy. But, some Western “scholars are hell-bent in creating enmity among nations, where there is none. The Indians would love to benefit from the services of such individuals. Because, to them, it is a win-win situation, where ‘an enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ Do you want Israel to play into the hands of Indians? What, if Pakistanis form an axis with fanatical “Mullas.” in Iran? Will that help Israel if it attacks Iran’s Nuclear Program? Think again, it is a nightmarish scenario, which the Global Village cannot afford. Is that a good scenario in your opinion? Or should Pakistan stay closer to the USand the West? But, those who are protagonists for Israel, would like to make Pakistan the enemy of Israel.
I happen to be a Pakistani American, who has visited Israel. I am trying hard to build bridges between these two nations, who share common values. But, what comes in the way of a detente are hate mongers, who like to stoke the flames of hatred between these two nations.
Pakistan has 5000 years of history. Among its people are Pashtuns, who trace their Semitic ancestry from biblical times to Yahuda, a son of Prophet Yaqub (Jacob,Peace Be Upon Him). Why would the Pashtuns want to destroy the biggest Semitic nation? The fear about Pakistani nuclear program as israel-oriented is a figment of a paranoid imagination. It comes from the minds of neurotic people who build dungeons in air. Pakistan has not built a single ballistic missile with any long range to reach Tel Aviv. Pakistani military does not take Israel as an enemy, neither it has a desire to do so. Pakistanis are more worried about, as I said about the mercurial Mullas of Iran, the lecherous Sheikhs of Arabian Peninsula, the hedonists of Brunei, the ultra nationalists Germans, and the racist Hindu Aryans ruling India, a la Gandhi family.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have people who are proud to be Semitic, as I said before. Why would a Pashtun want to destroy a nation like Israel, a home for their Semitic brothers of Hebrew ancestry? I bet, you never had this perspective and that goes to show.that one must know the subject well before writing about it, being a professor in a small school, does not give you license to write subjective, biased, and personal viewpoint based articles. Most of this argument do not hold water, because they are tainted by personal bias. I would suggest to you to read Robert Fisk, Uri Avnery, and Naom Chomsky. My Israeli friends have also told me that that some Americans, harm Israel’s interests more by creating real or imagined enemies for their nation. So, please be a responsible scholar. Light a candle, instead of cursing the darkness.
P.S.China is one of the wisest nations in the world. Please listen to what Chinese have to say, you may be enlightened, or even reach Nirvana!
Pakistan’s sacrifices in war on terror deserve respect
By Fu Xiaoqiang
The killing of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden by US special forces in the garrison town Abbottabad, close to the capital of Islamabad, sparked global discussion over Pakistan’s role in the action.
The US has started to revaluate its relations with Pakistan after the death of Bin Laden. The US Congress launched hearings on Pakistan and Afghanistan on May 5. The Pakistani military also held a special conference to assess the impact of the US mission.
The doubts the US harbors against Pakistan focus on two points: Whether Pakistan knew where Bin Laden was hiding and covered for him while he eluded capture for all these years, and whether to keep on cooperating with Pakistan in anti-terrorism.
The unilateral and successful mission to eliminate Bin Laden by the US demonstrated to some that the US could achieve its targets without help from Pakistan.
Leon Panetta, the CIA director, recently claimed that Pakistan could not be informed about the mission for fear that they might leak the information.
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari argued in an article in the Washington Post that the US reproaches of Pakistan’s initiative in anti-terrorism were groundless.
The US-Pakistan Defence Consultative Group said in a joint statement that the anti-terrorism operation aimed at Bin Laden indicated the importance of US-Pakistan cooperation.
The split opinions of the US and Pakistan reflected the ingrained distrust and severe disagreement on anti-terrorism strategies between them.
The unilateral action of the US in killing the terrorist mastermind has already placed Pakistan in a dilemma.
The Pakistani government was suspicious of sitting by while the US invaded their territory, air space and sovereignty, and feared that Pakistan might suffer from a round of reprisals from Al Qaeda if they admitted aiding the US.
But if they played no role, or if the mission truly had to be kept from them for fears of security leaks, the strategic conflicts between the two nations are utterly exposed.
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, chief of staff of Pakistan’s army, said in his statement after the special evaluation meeting that any further actions violating Pakistan’s sovereignty will lead the government to re-evaluate its possible military and information cooperation with the US.
The US needs to assess objectively and fairly Pakistan’s contributions and sacrifice in anti-terrorism.
During the decade-long anti-terrorism campaign, Pakistan has killed and arrested more than 400 Al Qaeda affiliates, including Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, suspected of being the mastermind behind the September 11 attacks, and has lost more than 3,000 police to terrorists.
According to statistics released by the Pakistani government, the direct and indirect economic losses in the recent 10 years from anti-terrorism total $100 billion, far more than the $20 billion economic aid given by the US during the same period.
Pakistan has paid a heavy social and political price for its involvement in the war on terrorism.
Society is in disorder, the security situation is deteriorating and many people have lost their homes.
Take the use of US drones in 2004 in Pakistan. More than 1,000 terrorists were killed in the bombing but an overwhelming number of Pakistan civilians were also slain.
After the death of Bin Laden, US political and academic circles initiated public discussions on Pakistan’s role in anti-terrorism and started to consider adjusting strategies toward the nation. Unilateral operations and targeted eliminations against terrorism seem to be popular in the US.
However, this could result in inconceivable consequences if the US keeps resorting to such methods in anti-terrorism operations while ignoring international principles of other nations’ sovereignty.
This July, the US will begin to gradually reduce its army in Afghanistan. The death of Bin Laden and the current strategic successes will accelerate the US retrenchment strategy in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Nevertheless, Pakistan is still able to play a vital part in regional security and global anti-terrorism.
The US should assist Pakistan in stabilizing its society and reviving its economy while respecting the nation’s sovereignty.
Utterly uprooting terrorists and extremists in the region is the duty of a global power.
The author is director of the Center for Counter-Terrorism Studies, China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations. [email protected]
