Political India: Engaging America

From The Hindu

Efforts led by General David Petraeus, head of military command for Afghanistan, may lead to the fearsome Haqqani network group of militants being labelled terrorists, reports have suggested, a move that could prove to be thorny for the United States-Pakistan relationship.

An article by the New York Times on Wednesday quoted unnamed administration officials as saying that General Petraeus had introduced the idea of blacklisting the Haqqani network late last week in discussions with President Obama’s senior advisers on Pakistan and Afghanistan. It went on to note that the action “was being seriously considered”.

In terms of immediate consequences, the application of the terrorist label to the group would likely lead to legal restrictions on U.S. entities trading with it and possibly the freezing of the group’s assets in the U.S..

However, the broader implications of such a move include the possibility of it posing a serious challenge for the U.S.’ Af-Pak strategy. This is especially likely given Pakistan’s close ties with the Haqqani network and the efforts of Afghan President Hamid Karzai to build broader alliances in his country, including with members of the Taliban, who are also known to have links to the Haqqani group.

One immediate issue that is likely to be affected by the Haqqani network question is the ongoing debate on which members of the Taliban should feature on a United Nations sanctions list and which of them should be taken off the list, as requested by President Karzai.

Responding to a question from The Hindu, Richard Holbrooke, President Barack Obama’s Special Envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan said at a briefing, “In every war of this sort, there’s always a window for people who want to come in from the cold... If they are willing to accept the red lines… there has to be a place for them.” He added that some of these Afghans “may live next door and take sanctuary next door”, in a reference to Pakistan harbouring some members of these groups.

The Haqqani network, now controlled by militants based in Pakistan was created by the Afghan warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani. Today it is reported to be led by his son Sirajuddin.

The NYT report noted that the idea of blacklisting the network was “first made public on Tuesday by Senator Carl Levin, Democrat of Michigan, who has just returned from Pakistan and Afghanistan.” It added that Senator Levin did not disclose any conversations he might have had with General Petraeus on the subject.

The report further quoted Senator Levin as saying, “At the moment, the Haqqani network — and their fighters coming over the border from Pakistan into Afghanistan — is the greatest threat, at least external threat, to Afghanistan.”

He was reported to have also said, “More needs to be done by Pakistan… The Pakistanis have said they now realise, more than ever, that terrorism is a threat to them — not just the terrorists who attack them directly, but the terrorists who attack others from their territory.”

Labels: General David Petraeus, Haqqani network, U.S.-Pakistan ties