The ISI files - The US finally sees the connection between ISI and Taliban

[Zap_Brannigan]

Afghanistan war logs: White House attacks Pakistan over Taliban aid More than 180 files detail accusations that the ISI spy agency has supplied, armed and trained insurgents since 2004 Allegations in the war logs that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence has been covertly supporting the Taliban kicked off a political storm tonight as the White House said the situation was "unacceptable" and described militant safe havens in Pakistan as "intolerable". More than 180 intelligence files in the war logs, most of which cannot be confirmed, detail accusations that Pakistan's premier spy agency has been supplying, arming and training the insurgency since at least 2004. The Obama administration, which gives $1bn a year in military aid to Pakistan, did not challenge the veracity of the files, but said that while Islamabad was making progress against extremism, "the status quo is not acceptable". "The safe havens for violent extremist groups within Pakistan continue to pose an intolerable threat to the United States, to Afghanistan, and to the Pakistani people," a spokesman said in response to questions about the ISI files. He urged Pakistan's military and intelligence services to "continue their strategic shift against violent extremists groups within their borders, and stay on the offensive against them". An ISI spokesman said the agency could not comment in detail until it had examined the files, but described the general allegations as "far-fetched and unsubstantiated". The accusations against the ISI in the war logs range from spectacular to lurid. Reports describe covert ISI plots to train legions of suicide bombers, smuggle surface-to-air missiles into Afghanistan, assassinate President Hamid Karzai and poison western beer supplies. But despite the startling allegations the files yield little convincing evidence behind Afghan accusations that the ISI is the hidden hand behind the Taliban. Much of the intelligence is unverifiable, inconsistent or obviously fabricated, and the most shocking allegations, such as the Karzai plot, are sourced to the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Afghanistan's premier spy agency, which has a history of hostility towards the ISI. "The vast majority of this is useless," a retired US officer with long experience in the region told the Guardian."There's an Afghan prejudice that wants to see an ISI agent under every rock." But he said the allegations chime with other US reporting, collected by other agencies and at a higher classification, that pointed to ISI complicity with the Taliban. "People wouldn't be making up these stories if there wasn't something to it. There's always a nugget of truth to every conspiracy theory," he said. The storm over the ISI files comes at a sensitive time. In recent months Pakistan's army chief, General Ashfaq Kayani, and the ISI chief, General Shuja Pasha, have drawn closer to Karzai, their former rival, with a view to negotiating a peace deal with the Taliban. The ISI has rejected suggestions that it is playing a "double game", pointing to the arrest of the deputy Taliban commander, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, in Karachi last February as proof of its good intent. In issuing such a strongly worded statement with implicit criticism of the ISI, the White House may be trying to keep ahead of a tide of US opinion that is hostile towards Pakistan. But the Obama administration has little choice but to stick with its Pakistani allies, whose co-operation they need in hunting al-Qaida fugitives along the Afghan border. The ISI and the CIA are co-operating closely on drone strikes that have hit 47 targets and killed up to 440 people this year. The war logs are likely to stoke passions in Pakistan where the rightwing press has long accused the US of seeking an excuse to invade and seize the country's nuclear weapons. A hint of this reaction came from the ISI official. "It's very strange such a huge cache of information can be leaked to the media so conveniently," he said. "Is it something deliberate? What is its purpose? We'll be looking into that." http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/25/pakistan-isi-supporting-taliban-washington?intcmp=239

[Zap_Brannigan]

Actually, US knew this for long. But the documents were leaked by wikileaks last weekend. India to the rest of the World - "We told you so!" More on the material "The material, largely classified by the US as secret, was obtained by the whistleblower website Wikileaks, which has published the full archive. The Guardian, along with the New York Times and the German weekly Der Spiegel, was given access to the logs before publication to verify their authenticity and assess their significance. [...] The Guardian, the New York Times and Der Spiegel agreed to publish their reports simultaneously, at the same time as Wikileaks released the full database online."

[Rajiv]

I don't get this point But the Obama administration has little choice but to stick with its Pakistani allies, whose co-operation they need in hunting al-Qaida fugitives along the Afghan border US - Superpower has no choice? and 10 years on, still hunting for Osama and with all the troops, power, tech, satellite et al, a bearded man in Pathani suit is still hiding while Pak is conveniently sucking US Tax Dollars Amazing, US looks like a BIG fool here

[Zap_Brannigan]

I don't get this point But the Obama administration has little choice but to stick with its Pakistani allies, whose co-operation they need in hunting al-Qaida fugitives along the Afghan border US - Superpower has no choice? and 10 years on, still hunting for Osama and with all the troops, power, tech, satellite et al, a bearded man in Pathani suit is still hiding while Pak is conveniently sucking US Tax Dollars Amazing, US looks like a BIG fool here

Does look bad on the US. I think they might have a different agenda to stay in the area other than hunting for Osama. Maybe Osama is really hiding under a rock like Saddam was.

[Rajiv]

^^ You mean Osama is Hiding One Agenda is like that old school like from Hindi movies where you try to buy someone with money, if not then you attack. So far, they have given so much that Pakistan has to dance to their tunes We are really unfortunate to be in this mess, we have to shed more lives as long as US has their hands on Pak, we can't do anything

[Clarke]

ALL LIES .. WHERE IS EVIDENCE DEATH TO ALL JUICE AND ENEMIES OF PAKISTAN & ISLAM Thank heavens the Americans are still in Afghanistan, most of the mullah anger is thus directed away from India.

[Zap_Brannigan]

^^ You mean Osama is Hiding One Agenda is like that old school like from Hindi movies where you try to buy someone with money, if not then you attack. So far, they have given so much that Pakistan has to dance to their tunes We are really unfortunate to be in this mess, we have to shed more lives as long as US has their hands on Pak, we can't do anything

Yes Osama, not obama...funny mistake! Didnt US turn to pak after India said no to give them airspace? Pak might take the US money and dance to their tunes but who knows how much of that very money is being used to fund further attacks. Let's hope that the world gets to know the real pakistan as we do thanks to this leak.

[achilles]

US doesn't give a damn about ISI and its nexus as long as it doesn't harm them, which it seems to be doing here. India doesn't give a damn even though we've been at the receiving end of this non-sense for over 50 years. Its about time we took this issue head-on and step-up the diplomatic pressure even more.

[DomainK]

I think the US likes the idea of using Muslims against extremist Muslims. Pakistan is their best bet as it is full of corruption, money can do anything there and it has been actively involved with Islamic extremist terrorism. US has realized that the terrorists can not be handled directly by the west, the best way to deal with them is to create a divide and let them fight each other. They have been partially successful as well. And yes, they dont care if India takes some damage on the way.

[King Tendulkar]

US doesn't give a damn about ISI and its nexus as long as it doesn't harm them, which it seems to be doing here. India doesn't give a damn even though we've been at the receiving end of this non-sense for over 50 years. Its about time we took this issue head-on and step-up the diplomatic pressure even more.

Sums it up

[asterix]

Also there are other US compulsions..US doesn't want to lose control over this rogue country else it would drift away to Chinese hands.. Also US knows that India, how it gets fecked will not align with any other allies (because India doan't have any allies, to be honest and is actually on it's own, thanks to chewtiya Govt. policies over the years).. For Pakistan, it'a like win-win situation (for Pak Army that is..)..They can keep on sucking the monies from USA, carry on disruptive activities in the region and also continue have good strategic alliance with Chinese..And if they manage to get hold of Afganistan, it will be like "Sonay Pe Suhagaa" (Cherry on the cake)..

[CSK Fan]

80% of the fund US gives to Pak for hunting terrorists is being used by Pak for procuring weapon to be used against India. I dont know why Obama is continuing with their dumb policy http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pak-using-US-funds-for-war-on-terror-to-bolster-military-might/articleshow/6206960.cms NEW DELHI: Pakistan army has been diverting a large part of US funds meant for the global war on terrorism for conventional weapon procurements from China and other countries. This illegal diversion of US provided funds, far more than what is known in public, is resulting in massive modernisation of Pakistan military beyond its official means, believes the Indian security establishment. A source said the findings and concerns of India were shared with the US during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's US visit in April. This issue formed a substantial part of the conversation between the two sides. Officials later said US President Barack Obama had committed to Singh that security assistance to Pakistan would be monitored and kept under closer observation. Since the coordinated terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in the US, Pakistan has received at least $18 billion (approximately Rs 90,000 crore) under various US assistance and allowance programmes. At least one assessment by the Indian security establishment says the Pakistan army may have diverted as much as $14 billion for weapons purchases meant for a military conflict with India.

[Clarke]

Pakistan's most powerful spy agency on Monday lashed out against a trove of leaked US intelligence reports that alleged close connections between it and Taliban militants fighting Nato troops in Afghanistan, calling the accusations malicious and unsubstantiated. http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/pakistan/03-isi-denounces-us-intelligence-reports-ss-10 I told u so :hitler:

[Clarke]

80% of the fund US gives to Pak for hunting terrorists is being used by Pak for procuring weapon to be used against India. I dont know why Obama is continuing with their dumb policy http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pak-using-US-funds-for-war-on-terror-to-bolster-military-might/articleshow/6206960.cms NEW DELHI: Pakistan army has been diverting a large part of US funds meant for the global war on terrorism for conventional weapon procurements from China and other countries. This illegal diversion of US provided funds, far more than what is known in public, is resulting in massive modernisation of Pakistan military beyond its official means, believes the Indian security establishment. A source said the findings and concerns of India were shared with the US during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's US visit in April. This issue formed a substantial part of the conversation between the two sides. Officials later said US President Barack Obama had committed to Singh that security assistance to Pakistan would be monitored and kept under closer observation. Since the coordinated terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 in the US, Pakistan has received at least $18 billion (approximately Rs 90,000 crore) under various US assistance and allowance programmes. At least one assessment by the Indian security establishment says the Pakistan army may have diverted as much as $14 billion for weapons purchases meant for a military conflict with India.

forget funds, they provide the newer versions of F-16 multirole fighters and naval frigates to fight the Taliban :blink: Since when did one need air superiority fighters and navies to fight the taliban on the Af-Pak border :hmmmm2: Thankfully A K Antony brought up his concerns to Admiral Mullen recently and this was not the first time.