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The Pakistani military rebukes US Ambassador Anne W. Patterson and her government’s Pakistani loyalists and warns that Islamabad alone has the right to decide its national interest in accordance with its priorities and not in accordance with those set in Washington DC.
AHMED QURAISHI | Wednesday | 8 October 2009
WWW.PAKNATIONALISTS.COM
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan—Top generals of the Pakistan Army issued an indirect but strong warning to Washington and the pro-US government in Islamabad to desist from interfering in Pakistan’s sovereign right to decide its national interest and priorities.
“Pakistan is a sovereign state and has all the rights to analyse and respond to the threat in accordance with her own national interests,” said an unusually strong statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations [ISPR], on Oct. 7.
It came at the tail of a daylong conference of the commanders of the main corps of the Pakistani armed forces, chaired by the Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.
Analysts said this was an indirect rebuke to US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne W. Patterson and other US officials who have been pressuring Pakistan to take a number of actions that fall within the sovereign domain of the country and may not conform to national interest. This includes the decision on whether to launch a military action in the tribal belt adjoining Afghanistan; Pakistan’s role, if any, in helping US eliminate opponents of its eight-year long occupation of Afghanistan, and whether America’s war in that country should become Pakistan’s top national security priority superseding the threat from India.
The military also indirectly rebuffed several US loyalists in the Pakistani government, including President Zardari, his foreign minister and his envoy to Washington who have been fierce advocates of the Kerry-Lugar aid bill that stops short of declaring Pakistan a terrorist state and designates the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta as the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban leadership, all without providing any evidence to back this serious allegation. Other conditions contained in the US aid bill virtually give Washington the right to oversee the smallest details in the workings of the Pakistani civilian and military institutions.
Sources suggest that General Kayani told the commander of the US forces in Afghanistan Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who was briefly in Rawalpindi on Tuesday, that US Ambassador Anne Patterson’s recent statements, where she indirectly threatened war against Pakistan, were unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the future.
Not that Ms. Patterson is taking it lying down. She reportedly met yesterday a local politician from Balochistan whose fugitive family member is leading a separatist terror campaign from a safe haven in US-controlled Afghanistan, where the separatist terror movement receives money and financing from US allies in Kabul and also from Indian intelligence operatives based in Afghanistan.
The stance of the Pakistani military on the Kerry-Lugar bill and the US ambassador’s statements accurately reflects the feelings among a majority of Pakistanis. This leaves the elected government, with its unusually strong pro-US position, isolated in the country. The elected government, which came to power through a US-brokered deal that whitewashed illegally obtained wealth, is effectively using Washington to confront the Pakistani military and enforce the US agenda for Pakistan and the region.
Almost all the major Pakistani politicians – President Zardari, Altaf Hussain of MQM, Asfandyar Wali of ANP, and now Nawaz Sharif of PMLN – are now directly conducting their own foreign policies with Washington. This has made US a direct player in Pakistani politics, a level of meddling unprecedented in the history of Pak-US relations.
But despite this, the Pakistani military made it clear in the statement that it believed the Pakistani parliament is the right forum to decide the fate of the US aid bill in accordance with the wishes of the Pakistani people.
This is the text of the statement issued by the military on Wednesday:
Press Release
No 396/2009-ISPR
Dated: October 7, 2009
Rawalpindi – October 7, 2009:
122 Corps Commanders Conference was held at General Headquarters today. The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani chaired the day long meeting. The participants were given a comprehensive briefing on the current security situation in the country and the region.
COAS in his opening remarks dilated upon various issues related to national security and impending challenges faced by the country. COAS reiterated that Pakistan is a sovereign state and has all the rights to analyse and respond to the threat in accordance with her own national interests.
Kerry Lugar bill also came under discussion during the conference. The forum expressed serious concern regarding clauses impacting on National Security. A formal input is being provided to the Government. However, in the considered view of the forum, it is the Parliament, that represents the will of the people of Pakistan, which would deliberate on the issue, enabling the Government to develop a National response.
COAS in his concluding remarks reiterated that Pakistan stands committed to global and regional peace, and wishes to live in harmony with her neighbours.
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Hello Rossie and Hassan,,,,thanks for being sooo cheap. And good to know that they are successful in renting such tawdry \’personalities\’.
I have had enough of talking to CIA agents and Pakistan\’s rented boys. This message is addressed to genuine Pakistanis. Please read Dr Maleeha Lodhi\’s article in The News International today:http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=204041. Even decent American citizens recognise what our home-grown traitors do not – Wall Street Journal\’s observation on the KLB (before it became law) was: THUMB IN THE EYE OF PAKISTANI NATIONAL PRIDE. This was echoed in a recent article in Jang by Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, who wrote about the loss of GHAIRAT in so many of our fellow Pakistanis. Such noble sentiments are beyond the comprehension of those unfortunate souls who have sold themselves out for worldly gain. To them, and to their CIA handlers, we are PINHEADS, BRAINLESS, HALF WITS, OSTRICHES, WE LACK INTELLECTUAL HONESTY, etc!
Would the CIA agents and America’s hired stooges in Pakistan please answer the following questions: (1) Do you accept that the USA government came up with the ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’ lie to provide a flimsy excuse for the invasion of Iraq? (2) Do you accept that the Americans staged the farce of 9/11 to enable them to deceive the world once again and invade Afghanistan? (3) Do you accept that the Americans propped up their puppet in Pakistan, the traitor Busharraf, so that they could destroy Pakistan’s sovereignty by establishing military bases in Pakistan, by flying their drones unhindered to murder Pakistani citizens (suspected terrorists AND a much larger number of innocent civilians), by getting Busharraf to trade Pakistani citizens for US dollars (remember Dr Afia Siddiqui?) and, generally, by getting Busharraf to do the bidding of his masters in Washington? (4) Do you accept that when it became clear to the Americans that the Pakistanis would no longer tolerate Busharraf, a dirty deal was struck with corrupt Pakistani politicians, resulting in a gang of criminals controlling the reins of power in Islamabad? (5) It would be easy to turn this sham Pakistani democracy into a genuine democracy by stipulating that all party leaders must be elected through free and fair elections within Pakistan’s political parties. Please explain why the USA chooses to avoid taking this step? (6) Do you deny that wherever the USA steps in, death and destruction follow? Do you accept that the HOLOCAUST of Iraq, Afghanistan and, now, Pakistan has already claimed more than two million lives, racing towards the 3 million figure? FINALLY, let us remember that there is no such thing as a free lunch. ‘Kill Bill’ – now “Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009”! – is a political document under the guise of aid for poor Pakistani people. Its clauses relating to certification (section 203) would tie up Pakistan’s Armed Forces, hand and foot, and leave them at the mercy of the criminal gang ruling in Islamabad (this gang is currently busy trying to legalise the NRO abomination, and to pave the way for future criminal acts by closing down NAB and introducing new legislation to legalise corruption by the powers that be). Since that gang owes its power to the USA, the Trojan horse of “Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act” will effectively allow the USA to control Pakistan\’s destiny.
We need to be on our guard against CIA agents and Pakistani traitors bought out by the Americans. The full text of ‘Kill Bill’ can be read here: http://pakistaniat.com/2009/10/07/full-text-kerry-lugar-bill/. It is most unfortunate that ‘America’s ambassador in the Pakistani embassy in Washington’ made no attempt to have an Urdu version of this deceitful bill published. Those who have read the bill in English know why: the vast majority of Pakistanis, not blinded by their “English education” and a slavish adherence to an alien culture, would have been up in arms and they would have summarily rejected the Trojan horse of KLB unless the clauses relating to certification, at least, were radically amended. A bill, by its nature, is a legal document and it requires close scrutiny by qualified lawyers. Therefore, just as the KLB had been widely debated in the USA for the last two years, it should have been similarly discussed in Pakistan’s Parliament. The farce of 3 days’ debate, without allowing members of Paliament to vote, whips the fig leaf away from Pakistan’s bogus democracy: an ugly arrangement to advance American interests in Pakistan. The USA is a country that has no compunction in deceiving the whole world by manufacturing the bogey of Iraq’s ‘Weapons of Mass Destruction’, and allowing some 3,000 of its own citizens to be murdered in cold blood on 9/11 just so it could invade a sovereign nation thousands of miles away. How is it possible to place one’s trust in a country such as this? Now that our armed forces have taken a decision to bring the foreign-backed Pakistani rebels to heel in Waziristan, we should ask the obvious question: where are these rebels getting their sophisticated weapons and slick training from? Given that they are surrounded on three sides by our armed forces, the obvious answer is: through Afghanistan. Go figure, as the Americans say!
Dear General Kayani,
It is almost one month since your press release of 7th October 2009, which came as a breath of fresh air amid the putrid atmosphere of conspiracy created by the Americans and their lackeys in Pakistan\’s government circles. Another statement of intent by Pakistan\’s armed forces was eagerly awaited, especially when the USA-engineered Zardari government abruptly ended the debate in the National Assembly and cravenly accepted the dangerous Trojan horse of \”aid\” under the KLB. More humiliation was heaped on us when the visiting Hillary Clinton told us we did not have to accept the aid if we did not like the conditions. That merely showed how mean and utterly dishonest this vindictive woman can be. Having already denied our National Assembly the opportunity to reject the \”aid\”, this hypocritical \”democracy-lover\” mocked our helplessness to do anything about it. MAY ALLAH GIVE OUR ARMED FORCES THE WISDOM AND THE MORAL STRENGTH TO RESIST THE AMERICAN INTERFERENCE IN OUR AFFAIRS. IN ADDITION TO THE ARMED ACTION IN WAZIRISTAN WE NEED TO DISARM THE AMERICAN MERCENARIES AND MARINES IN OUR MIDST AND DEPORT THEM. WHY HAVE OUR MILITARY AND ISI TAKEN NO ACTION SO FAR?
Ah! The hacks at Dawn! Is this a sick joke? So far as the USA is concerned Dawn\’s scribes see no evil, they hear no evil and, of course, they speak no evil. All the evil in the world resides in Pakistan alone! The wits at Dawn have a twisted sense of humour, rubbing their own country\’s nose in the dirt and looking down their noses at this \’land of the Pure, hee hee hee!\’. Give me AQ any time whose reports, though not perfect, are far more balanced compared to the half-truths and hypocritical scribbles to be found in Dawn. As I said below, two wrongs do not make a right. A time must come when we\’ll have to pick ourselves up from the feet of our foreign masters, smash our begging bowl to pieces and walk off with head held high.
Idiot AQ! Read this.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/columnists/14-kamran-shafi-bullying-the-bloody-civilians-zj-01
I seriously think you are a smart person. So please stop being on the payroll of Army/ISI. Please do something honest to earn the sobriquet of analyst rather than rehash what your paymaster at pindi want you to say.
I know you are intelligent enough to do it.
a well wisher!
In so far as the \”aid\” for military spending specified in the KLB is concerned, we must reject it out of hand because the bill’s humiliating conditions are merely a device to enable the Americans to spread their influence deep into Pakistan. We are estimated to have spent at least $30 billion as a result of our involvement in a series of wars that the USA has spawned in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. We ought to DEMAND compensation for the losses suffered as a result of our involvement in America\’s wars. Therefore, we should reject the KLB and seek compensation for our losses from the USA government. Also, we can probably raise more than the \”aid\” under the KLB through increased duties on the transit of America\’s military hardware and supplies through Pakistani territory – we MUST negotiate improved rates. Another source of funds would be the recovery of stolen national wealth from Zardari and Co., widely reputed to be a gang of criminals that the Americans have imposed on us under our bogus democratic system (no democracy at the level of political parties, which exist primarily to benefit a particular family or a small privileged class). THE PAINFUL REALITY IS THAT THE USA HAS TRANSFORMED ITSELF INTO AN IMMORAL POWER WITH IMPERIAL DESIGNS. Please also see my comments on Ahmed Qureshi’s blog relating to USA ambassador’s media campaign in Pakistan
Pakistan is struggling. We have over 170 million people. Roughly 2/3 of this population which means 113 million Pakistani\’s live under 160rs day. Pakistani\’s like you and me do not require this aid. It is the slums in Karachi, the open sewer in Lahore, the open stove in Quetta and the roof over the house in Peshawar that require this aid money. This aid money if utilized smartly, can have a multiplier effect for our Human Development Index (HDI). The language in the Bill poses a problem. We need to rectify it it, not reject it. Read my article to get a different perspective.
http://www.ahraza.wordpress.com/2009/10/08/lets-not-kill-the-moment/
ahr, you are quite right in one respect. Following the farce of 9/11, the traitor Busharraf sold out our honour to the Americans and turned Pakistan into a client state. That is why it is very important for General Kayani to disclose to the Pakistani nation all the humiliating deals that Busharraf had struck with the Americans. Having said that, you are quite wrong about your assessment of KLB. Two wrongs do not make one right. Having been humiliated and dishonoured by Busharraf, must we re-sell Pakistan\’s honour again under Zardari?
I don\’t think it\’s an appropriate response to the Kerry-Lugar Bill that the United States is trying to take over Pakistan as many articles suggest. If Pakistan\’s sovereignty is being challenged by a Bill, is it not challenged when the Pakistan Army has allowed drone attacks on its own citizens?
http://ahraza.wordpress.com/2009/10/08/lets-not-kill-the-moment/
I salute to the army chief who honours the zeal of the motherland and would not bow down to any pressure , KLB is good to meet our financial needs but we are not for sale & do not accept dictates rather would stand up to safeguard our own interests !ZINDABAD….!
A most appropriate and apt response. Politically correct too as the ISPR release which most people have not read before fulminating on the subject indicates. Hope the Government (Parliament) takes a correct decision now. After all Kerry Lugar may be a grant that means well but on offer is only .7% of our GDP or 3.6% of our F.E. earnings and we surely have a right to accept it or not. Peanuts may be on offer but monkeys we surely are not. Mr Zardari, Haqqani, Malik remove the demeaning clauses please. Had our Defence Minister not be prone to behave like a Deaf Mute,he could have conveyed all this to the Parliament himself.