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Pakistan is
playing with fire Faheem Dashty A recent agreement struck between
Pakistan's newly-elected government and the Taliban created much worry among
political and military circles in Afghanistan. Pakistani officials announced that
as a result of the agreement, the Pakistani Taliban will not target
government institutions. In exchange, the government pledged to end attacks
on Taliban positions in border areas along Afghanistna. Before the new government took the
power, heavy fighting took place between its forces and Taliban from
Waziristan, Baujur, Melkand, Swat and some parts of Baluchistan. Islamabad had deployed 100,000
troops in the battle against the Taliban. According the figures provided by
Pakistan's Ministry of Interior, 200 soldiers, more than 500 Taliban and 300
civilians died during three months of fighting. By striking a deal with the
Taliban, the new government has rejected President Musharraf's policies. In
2006, Musharraf also struck an unofficial agreement with the Taliban in
Waziristan. The agreement resulted in an expansion of areas under Taliban
control and the expansion their influence into areas of Waziristan and the
creation of new training camps. Musharraf responded by conducting military
operations against the Taliban. The recent decision by the new
government has drawn criticism from within and outside of Pakistan. The
Afghan government expressed deep concerns about the agreement. Both Minister
of Defense Rahim Wardak and National Directorate of Security director
Amrullah Saleh directly criticized the agreement. The deal will increase
insurgent activities in the south, they said. In Pakistan, the Muslim League and
People's Party - who are the architects of the deal - but the Qaed-e-Azam
Muslim League Party has criticized the agreement. The spokespersons of the
party pointed at pervious agreements between the government with Taliban and
expressed concerns that the new agreement will create a situation beyond the
control of the government. The United Kingdom supports the
actions of the Pakistani government. Washington, meanwhile, appears concerned
about the agreement. The United Kingdom has previously supported talks with
Taliban. In 2006, when the Taliban took control of Musa Qala district in
Helmand after a deal was struck between British forces and tribal elders of
the named province. The Helmand agreement had the same
negative result as the agreement between President Musharraf and Taliban.
This time, the outcome will not be any different. Perhaps Pakistani leaders
imagined that an agreement with the Taliban will end the security crisis in
their country, but in reality, the present situation will provide the Taliban
a chance to gain more power and wield control over more areas. In the short
term, Pakistani Taliban will honor the agreement and only support Taliban
activities inside of Afghanistan in order to increase their power and
reputation. As soon as they sense that they are strong enough to fight the
Pakistani government, they will undoubtedly try to overthrow the so-called
democratic government of Pakistan. In recent months, the Taliban have
tried to expand their areas of influence. They even tried to replace existing
laws in the northwestern frontier areas with a so-called Taliban sharia. The
attack on the Red Mosque in Islamabad and the arson of video and DVD shops in
Islamabad's markets proves that the Taliban intend to expand their ideology.
Musharraf realized the danger of the Taliban and ordered military operations
against insurgents. Now the Pakistani Taliban have
been provided with another opportunity to continue with the Talibanization of
Pakistan overtly and covertly. This situation not only will have dangerous consequences for Pakistan, but it
will have a direct negative impact on the security situation in Afghanistan. When pressure on Taliban centers
in Pakistan ease, the Pakistani army won’t take any action to prevent Taliban
movements into Afghanistan and once again, thousands of Pakistan Talibs will
infiltrate Afghanistan. Many observers believe that the
recent changes in Pakistani politics are the outcome of disagreements between
the UK and US. Pakistan's previous government led by President Musharraf had
close ties with Washington and then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who
closely supported American counter-terrorism policies. The British are now
attempting to play a bigger role in the region. We don't know the roots of
the disagreement between the UK and US, but it’s clear that their
controversial policies will not only negatively impact Pakistan and
Afghanistan, but the region and these two nations as well. Faheem Dashty
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