Hillary: Someone in the Pakistani government knows where Bin Laden is

Is this some sort of hamfisted way of pressuring Islamabad to turn over Bin Laden, as if nine years of foreign aid and diplomacy will finally start to work if only she embarrasses them enough publicly? What’s the strategy here, assuming there is one? Click the image to watch.

Both the US and Pakistan see a short window of opportunity to use what little leverage they have against each other to get what they want.

The Obama administration wants out of Afghanistan without suffering to much political fallout….something they can at least spin as “victory”……

Pakistan wants to exert as much control in Afghanistan as possible…. weakening India in the Process.

Pakistan knows that as long as the US is engaged in Afghanistan, the US needs them.They know that Obama is looking for the exits and their leverage with the US will be seriously diminished when we pull out.

Right now the Military is calling the shots in Pakistan…
namely….Gen Kayani:

Pakistan to America: What have you done for us lately?
By Arif Rafiq, March 19, 2010

If there was any ambiguity remaining as to who’s the principal architect of Pakistan’s national security policy, then it should have dissipated on Tuesday, when Kayani chaired a meeting of federal secretaries — the first time an army chief has done so under a civilian government. They met at the army’s general headquarters, instead of the originally designated venue, the ministry of foreign affairs. Kayani sought to coordinate the government’s agenda for the upcoming talks with the United States, which includes security issues as well as non-military topics, such as agriculture and energy.

…The General works hand in hand with the ISI….so it goes without saying that he works hand in hand with the Taliban…specifically the Haqqani network.

They are responsible for the Mumbai attacks,attacks on Coalition forces,and terrorist attacks across Pakistan and Afghanistan.

…They also worked hand in hand with Bin Laden:

Kayani roots for Haqqani

http://www.dailypioneer.com/267726/Kayani-roots-for-Haqqani.html

G Parthasarathy

New Delhi evidently recognises that Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and his ISI chief are working overtime to get the Taliban leader Sirajuddin Haqqani, now based in Pakistan, to control southern Afghanistan through a deal they appear to be negotiating with a beleaguered Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who is beset with fears of a precipitate American withdrawal. Simultaneously the ISI intends to keep the pot boiling in Jammu & Kashmir by backing Jama’at-e-Islami leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani and target Indian interests through the LeT and the Taliban’s Haqqani network across Afghanistan and in Bangladesh

Both Sirajuddin Haqqani and his father Jalaluddin Haqqani have been long-term assets of the ISI. They are both members of the ruling council of the Taliban, headed by Mullah Mohammed Omar. More importantly, Jalaluddin Haqqani, together with the ISI, has helped Osama bin Laden’s jihadi network in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 1988,

The Haqqani network, now led by Sirajuddin Haqqani, openly claims that its support for Al Qaeda today is “at its highest limit”. It also provides haven and support to jihadis from Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Chechnya, the Kurdish areas of Iran and Iraq, and even from Germany. While Gen Kayani has stonewalled and stalled American requests to crackdown on the Haqqani network on one pretext or another, the Americans are now dumbfounded to learn that behind their backs the Pakistani Army has been seeking to persuade the Afghans to give a leading role, probably involving de facto control of southern Afghanistan, to start with, for Sirajuddin Haqqani, their protégé who is an Islamic radical with demonstrably inseparable links with Al Qaeda.

The Obama administration,Karzi,and Pakistan are pushing for a “peace” agreement with these same factions.

Karzi’s movements with the Taliban became much stronger after the Obama administration did everything they could to undermine him before and after the elections.
Behind the scenes Karzi,Pakistan,and the Taliban have carried out talks to secure both Pakistan and the Taliban’s strength in Afghanistan.
The US is pretty much being played as a pawn with Pakistan and Karzi getting as much money,arms,and goods that they can before we exit:

Gen Kayani, ISI chief to visit Kabul today for talks

The visit is taking place on the heels of reports that Karzai had earlier held two meetings with Afghan Taliban commander Maulvi Sirajuddin Haqqani, whose group is based in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal region.

There are speculations that Pakistan is pushing for a ‘deal’ between Karzai and various warring factions of Afghan Taliban, allowing them to have a place in any future political dispensation in Kabul.

….Obama may have sent troops,but he also sent a message of weakness with time lines,terrible ROE’s,and lack of leadership by engaging with Karzi and American Generals less than trips he has made to the Golf course.

The Taliban “leaders” that were killed earlier this year were deemed expendable by the ISI and used to thwart backroom deals Karzi tried to make.
Now he is on line with Gen. Kayani and the power sharing of Afghanistan.
These hits also helped them politically with the US and ensured more money coming their way.

The US has a small window in which to get as much political capital out of this region as possible.

The crown jewel is Bin Laden.Hillary and the Pakistani’s know that Obama will be a hero in America with Bin Laden’s head over the fire place.
They are forking over money and using every political tool they can come up with to try and get anybody to break from the Pakistani/Taliban regime and give up Osama.They know that when they start to withdraw from the region…they will have no chance at all of getting him.

America is very unpopular in Pakistan and the people there could pressure the government and Gen. Kayani to give up Osama in the hopes that we will leave the region sooner than later.
Remember….Hillary also announced in this latest trip that they are “moving towards” putting the Haqqani network on our terrorist list…..another possible swipe at Gen. Kayani along with this statement that they are hiding Osama.
There is the time and Hillary is rolling the dice.
This also would be a major accomplishment for her if she were to run for President.

Baxter Greene on July 20, 2010 at 6:26 PM