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Analysis: Pakistan's Balancing Act

Council on Foreign Relations

Updated: October 10, 2006
Prepared by: Eben Kaplan

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said during a recent New York visit that his is one of the most difficult jobs in the world. Facing external pressure to be a major partner in the “war on terror” and internal pressure to resist Western influence, Musharraf must consistently pull off a delicate balancing act amid a tenuous security situation. But recent accusations suggest the scales have tipped too far to one side. Last month, the BBC published excerpts of a leaked report from a British military think tank alleging that Pakistan has been indirectly “supporting terrorism and extremism—whether in London on 7/7, or in Afghanistan, or Iraq.” Days later the police chief in Mumbai, India, claimed to have proof (Dawn) that Pakistan’s intelligence service, the ISI, planned the July 11 attacks on that city’s commuter rail system. In late September, Afghan President Hamid Karzai complained at a CFR meeting that he had provided Islamabad with the location of fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Omar’s hideout near Quetta, Pakistan, yet Musharraf took no action. A new Backgrounder examines the charges that the ISI is supporting terrorists.

Musharraf has spent the last several weeks fending off his critics. In a video interview with the BBC, he stressed the essential role his country plays. “Remember my words,” he said, “If the ISI is not with you and Pakistan is not with you, you will lose in Afghanistan.” But when questioned a few days later about Pakistani support for the Taliban on U.S. television, Musharraf acknowledged that some retired members of his intelligence services could be aiding the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan.

Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.

Copyright 2006 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.