US finally doing more

Hence the drone strikes!

With an unannounced break longing a period of approximately nine (9) months, the nightmare of US drone strikes inside the Pakistani territory, that haunted the host authorities, has resumed, and thus lives on once again. The resumption of drone strikes come amid the Pakistani sides adaption to a more vocal approach demanding that it’s the US’s turn to Do-More now, as the former had already made contribution to the ongoing war on terror beyond its means and resources.

The US President Donald Trump outlining the US policy on Afghanistan in an address back in August where he accused Pakistan of harboring “agents of chaos”, primarily pointing at the Haqqani network, despite receiving billions of dollars’ worth of aid from the US since the initiation of the global war on terror did not sit well with Pakistan’s leadership.

For long, the US has accused Pakistani state of accommodating the Haqqani network, based and operating from near Pak-Afghan border, and has pressurized the latter throughout to take stern action against the group. The government of Pakistan, on the other hand, has categorically denied any allegiance with the Haqqani network. The group, allegedly, has been actively involved in fierce strikes on the US and NATO forces inside Afghanistan.

As the year 2017 nears its completion, the CIA-operated drone strikes apparently are picking up their pace once again, and signify the US administration’s patience running out over inaction from the Pakistani side. September, 2017 onwards there have been approximately 5 drone strikes killing around 35 alleged terrorists, and injuring several others.

The latest strike in the series was carried out on Thursday, November 30, 2017, in the Ghuzgari area in Kurram agency region near the mountainous terrain of Pak-Afghan border targeting militants belonging to the Haqqani network. The unmanned aerial vehicle dropped two missiles on the compound killing four terrorists, including a senior commander, Abdur Rasheed Haqqani, of the Haqqani network. Sources, as of now, deny any confirmation whether the senior commander was among those slain in the strike.

While the drones from India have been taken care of, and dealt with an iron hand, those coming from the western border continue to be problematic for Pakistan.

Back in October, another drone strike targeted a meeting of the representatives from the same outfit killing approximately 26 terrorists near border with Afghanistan. Another 5 were killed back in September.

This rise in the graph of drone strikes once again comes not as unprecedented, and is a cause of grave concern for the Pakistani leadership, as they may have a detrimental impact on the already troubled Pak-US relations in future ahead.

While the drones for Pakistan have been associated with the US coming from the western border, in an aberration now, the former back in October had received a quadcopter from the hostile eastern neighbor, India. The Indian quadcopter spying across the Line of Control (LoC), the De Facto border between the two countries, was shot down by Pakistan Army in Rakhchikri sector, and its wreckage was taken into custody.

“Indian quadcopter spying across LoC in Rakhchikri sector shot down by Pak Army shooters. Wreckage held,” tweeted the DG ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor. The drone had crashed 60 meters into the Pakistani territory, stated the Pakistan military spokesperson.

This was not the first time that a drone spying across the LoC has been shot down. In a similar incident back in November, 2016, an Indian quadcopter spying across the LoC was shot down by Pakistan Army at Aagahi post in Rakhchikri sector, which the Indian military had denied.

The shooting down of spying Indian drones reaffirms the need to remain alert on the eastern border and also is an evident sign of our military’s promptness to respond.

The question arises; however, will the drones from the western border be treated in the same manner? As they, not only, equally undermine the sovereignty of the land, but could also result in potential collateral damage which is counter-productive in the war on terror.

While the drones from India have been taken care of, and dealt with an iron hand, those coming from the western border continue to be problematic for Pakistan. The already sore relations between Pakistan and the US will seize to sustain provided the environment of mistrust and blame-games continues to blossom.

The possibility of a US-India nexus in the region is already a threat to Pakistan’s national security to deal with which the external as well as internal security must be made fool-proof, and the diplomatic outreach must be broadened to potential World powers including Russia, in order to abate reliance on any single super power.

Pakistan’s demand of border management stands today more than ever justified in order to stop the cross-border movement from Pakistan into Afghanistan and vice versa, as it can prove to be the most effective and sustainable solution to the problem of cross border infiltration.

In addition to the aforementioned, it is imperative on part of the US to respect the territorial sovereignty of Pakistan, and resort to intelligence sharing with the counter parts here for necessary action. The government of Pakistan has already extended full support to the US in case of credible actionable intelligence being shared. The former President of the US, Barack Obama, during his visit to India, stated that Pakistani government was not aware of Osama Bin Laden’s presence in Abbottabad. Had the information been shared timely, the Pakistani authorities might have taken necessary action, containing the uproar of US resentment towards Pakistan, and likewise.

Pakistan’s diplomatic cadre must assertively confront the US for undermining the territorial integrity of Pakistan.