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Admiral Mullen is absolutely correct.
The Pakistan military have had a love affair with extremist Islamists for quite a while, and have subsequently armed, trained, financed and guided them for many decades. Not just Haqqani but other terrorist groups amounting to 500,000 men. Though eyes brows must be raised if the Americans did not know about this long before they invested $10's of billions of $ into the Pakistan military machine from 1954.
The military the world over attract right-wing people with usually a simple view of the world, Pakistan is no exception. Whilst the military may sometimes be effective in their field, national defense, they ought to be kept well clear of national politics and intelligence (separation of powers). Unfortunately in Pakistan as in the USA since the 1960's, the military control intelligence, and set to a considerable degree national policies.........thus naturally in these two countries where the military dominate, "security" of whatever shade tends to dominate national life, detrimentally. If its not this its that, and if its not that its this today and next week.
In the American military extremist generals rail against Muslims, talking of fighting a new Crusade which has become a reality in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya and Pakistan.....circulating Crusader coins amongst themselves. In the Pakistan military the extremists officers grow beards, rail against Shia's, Ahmedis, Sufis, India and of course the USA.
Naturally the Pakistan military can't be used in all scenario's where they might want to exert force both within Pakistan, and outside, so naturally they have used Sunni extremist groups as proxy forces.
1. 1948 the Pakistan military sent a force of 10,000 Pashtun's and military personnel as civilians to invade Kashmir.
2. In 1965 they did the same against India.
3. In the 1971 civil war in East Pakistan, the Pakistan military armed extremist Sunni groups which carried out a vicious terror campaign against East Pakistani intellectuals critical of the Pakistani military.
4. In the campaign against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan the Pakistan military sought out extremist Sunni groups to fight the Jihad against the Soviet Union.....namely Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Haqqani. The notoriety of these two psychopaths is well known...their tactics against the Soviet Union and against their fellow Mujaheddin. America was well aware of all this, and was complicit in supporting these groups.
5. The Pakistan military created the Taliban in 1994...another extremist Sunni group, which even the mullahs of Iran called "fossilized dinosaurs". The Taliban was created with full American blessing and may have put the idea to the Pakistanis in the first place.
6. The Pakistan military sustained the idea of "al-Qaeda".......guiding key members, especially Tim Osman where the ISI appointed liaison officers to guide him in Afghanistan from 1996, until he died in December 2001.
7. Nearly ALL terrorism within Pakistan (300 incidents since 2001, and 4000 deaths) are carried out by the Pakistan military using Sunni terrorist groups, against Sufi Muslims, Shia Muslims, Christian Pakistanis....and even against the government as a tool of destabilization.
8. Terrorism and using Sunni terrorist groups is an integral part of Pakistani security/military strategy to maintain its dominant position within Pakistani society, protect its economic and social interests...and further its broad policies both within in Pakistan and outside.
But Kiyani with a straight face will deny that the Pakistan military has any links with Haqqani even as his officers in the ISI meet him daily, and provide safe houses for the likes of Hekmatyar and Mullah Omer in Karachi.
On the other hand it is also incredible that the link between the ISI and Haqqani has come as a surprise to Admiral Mullen, a man in his position, and that he has chosen to highlight this dangerous connection NOW. A relationship that goes back to the late 1970's, some 30 years back.
The love affair and cooperation between the American military, and the Pakistan military is unnatural. Admiral Mullen will have to triple his visits to Pakistan to maintain this abnormal love affair..........which will work naturally to unravel itself in the end.
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Pakistan Army Chief Slams Mullen Claims as Relations Sour
Insists US Engaged in 'Negative Propaganda' Over Allegations of Militant Ties
On Wednesday, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen accused Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency of having active ties with the terrorist Haqqani network. One day later, his Pakistani counterpart Gen. Parvez Kayani responded.
Kayani slammed Mullen’s allegations, insisting he was engaging in “negative propaganda.” Before taking over as the Pakistani chief of staff, Gen. Kayani was the head of the ISI, and held the position from 2004-2007.
The dueling statements underscore the increasingly tense relations between the US and Pakistan. It is particularly ironic that they are the result of Mullen’s visit, as it was supposed to improve those ties.
The relationship began to significantly worsen after the Raymond Davis scandal, which led to the revelation that the US had hundreds of CIA agents operating in Pakistan above and beyond the enormous force that was there with permission and operating in concert with the ISI. This was followed by a US drone strike which killed a number of key government allies. Pakistan has since demanded an end to all US drone strikes in the country.
