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- Dec 6, 2011
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Re: American kidnapped in Pakistan begs Obama to negotiate with al Qaeda for his rele
The fact that we're not in a perfect world is why I don't advocate cutting our ties with Pakistan completely, sealing off the Afghan/Pakistani border to quarantine them, and then letting them deal with the Taliban - their Frankenstein - on their side of the border. Because of Pakistan's unique role in the Afghanistan conflict and because of the presence of many terrorists in Pakistan who wish to destabilize Afghanistan, I agree with you that Pakistan is a necessary partner in achieving our aims in Central Asia. However, it should at least be acknowledged that the current situation - us providing indefinite aid to an unstable country only to be rewarded by covert (and sometimes overt) support for the enemies that we paid them to fight in the first place - is untenable, and that we should expand our alliances with other countries (such as India) while adjusting our policy towards Pakistan in accordance with the country's political reality.
In a perfect world type scenario I would be in full agreement with you, but as long as we are pursuing interests in the region with a focus in Afghanistan we are stuck with them. For better or worst
The fact that we're not in a perfect world is why I don't advocate cutting our ties with Pakistan completely, sealing off the Afghan/Pakistani border to quarantine them, and then letting them deal with the Taliban - their Frankenstein - on their side of the border. Because of Pakistan's unique role in the Afghanistan conflict and because of the presence of many terrorists in Pakistan who wish to destabilize Afghanistan, I agree with you that Pakistan is a necessary partner in achieving our aims in Central Asia. However, it should at least be acknowledged that the current situation - us providing indefinite aid to an unstable country only to be rewarded by covert (and sometimes overt) support for the enemies that we paid them to fight in the first place - is untenable, and that we should expand our alliances with other countries (such as India) while adjusting our policy towards Pakistan in accordance with the country's political reality.