Securing Stabilizing And Developing Pakistans Border Area With Afghanistan

Since 2002, destroying the terrorist threat and closing the terrorist safe haven along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan have been key national security goals. The U.S. has provided Pakistan with more than $12 billion for a variety of activities, in part to address these goals. About half of this amount has been to reimburse Pakistan for military-related support, including combat operations in and around the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. This report provides background info. on Pakistan; the status of U.S. gov¿t. efforts to develop a comprehensive plan; and info. on the goals, funding, and current status of U.S. efforts to use various elements of nat. power (i.e., mil., law enforce., dev¿t. and econ. assistance, and diplomacy) to combat terrorism in Pakistan. Illus.

Stabilizing and securing Pakistan's border with Afghanistan is a key goal of the Global War on Terror, and vital if the threat from Al Qaeda to the United States and the world is to be mitigated. Despite the effort of more than six years and expenditures of billions of dollars-some of it in aid to Pakistan for its own efforts in this measure-the goal remains unmet. This frank report, from the United States Government Accountability Office, assesses the current lack of a comprehensive plan for achieving this important objective and lays out a plan for moving forward. From the military element of such an effort-including the training and equipping of frontier corps-to the law-enforcement challenges of implementing border security to how diplomacy and economic development can help. Anyone who wishes to more fully understand the prosecution of the Global War on Terror will find this essential and informative reading.

Since 2002, destroying the terrorist threat and closing the terrorist safe haven along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan have been key national security goals. The United States has provided Pakistan, an important ally in the war on terror, with more than $12.3 billion for a variety of activities, in part to address these goals. About half of this amount has been to reimburse Pakistan for military-related support, including combat operations in and around the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Despite 6 years of U.S. and Pakistani government efforts, al Qaeda has regenerated its ability to attack the United States and continues to maintain a safe haven in Pakistan's FATA. As the United States considers how it will go forward with efforts to assist Pakistan in securing, stabilizing, and developing its FATA and Western Frontier bordering Afghanistan, it is vital that efforts to develop a comprehensive plan using all elements of national power be completed and that continued oversight and accountability over funds used for these efforts are in place. This report provides background information on Pakistan; the status of U.S. government efforts to develop a comprehensive plan; and information on the goals, funding, and current status of U.S. efforts to use various elements of national power (i.e., military, law enforcement, development and economic assistance, and diplomacy) to combat terrorism in Pakistan. The scope of this report does not include the plans, goals, operations, activities, and accomplishments of the intelligence community.

Securing, stabilizing, and developing Pakistan's border area with Afghanistan : key issues for congressional oversight : report to congressional requesters.

Since 2002, destroying the terrorist threat and closing the terrorist safe haven along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan have been key national security goals. The United States has provided Pakistan, an important ally in the war on terror, with more than $12.3 billion for a variety of activities, in part to address these goals. About half of this amount has been to reimburse Pakistan for military-related support, including combat operations in and around the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Despite 6 years of U.S. and Pakistani government efforts, al Qaeda has regenerated its ability to attack the United States and continues to maintain a safe haven in Pakistan's FATA. As the United States considers how it will go forward with efforts to assist Pakistan in securing, stabilizing, and developing its FATA and Western Frontier bordering Afghanistan, it is vital that efforts to develop a comprehensive plan using all elements of national power be completed and that continued oversight and accountability over funds used for these efforts are in place.

The Council on Foreign Relations sponsors Independent Task Forces to assess issues of current and critical importance to U.S. foreign policy and provide policymakers with concrete judgments and recommendations. Diverse in backgrounds and perspectives, Task Force members aim to reach a meaningful consensus on policy through private and non-partisan deliberations. Once launched, Task Forces are independent of CFR and solely responsible for the content of their reports. Task Force members are asked to join a consensus signifying that they endorse "the general policy thrust and judgments reached by the group, though not necessarily every finding and recommendation." Each Task Force member also has the option of putting forward an additional or a dissenting view. Members' affiliations are listed for identification purposes only and do not imply institutional endorsement. Task Force observers participate in discussions, but are not asked to join the consensus. --Book Jacket.

As President Obama reiterated during his December 1, 2009 speech at West Point, the core U.S. goal remains to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al-Qaeda and its safe havens in Pakistan, and to prevent their return to Pakistan or Afghanistan. While our combat mission in Afghanistan is not open-ended, we will remain politically, diplomatically, and economically engaged in Afghanistan and Pakistan for the long-term to protect our enduring interests in the region. Afghanistan: In Afghanistan, our focus is building the capacity of Afghan institutions to withstand and diminish the threat posed by extremism, and to deliver high-impact economic assistance –especially in the agricultural sector – to create jobs, reduce the funding that the Taliban receives from poppy cultivation, and draw insurgents off the battlefield. We are focusing our support at the national level on Afghan ministries that can have the most direct impact on service delivery, particularly in the geographic heart of the insurgency – the South and East. Consistent with the President's recently completed policy review, we are also adapting our programs to account for local realities, and broadening our support and engagement at the provincial and district levels to enhance the visibility, effectiveness, and accountability of the institutions that impact Afghan lives the most. The provinces and districts are where our most consequential programs will be delivered, where we must help the Afghan government provide economic opportunities that increase stability and reduce the strength of the insurgency –and where we are most visibly expanding our civilian commitment. President Karzai's inaugural address set forth an ambitious agenda, focusing on: reintegration; economic development; improving relations with Afghanistan's regional partners; and steadily increasing the security responsibilities of Afghan security forces. Rapid progress on this agenda is important, and will require international support. Toward this end, we are encouraging the Afghan government to take strong actions to combat corruption and improve governance, and to provide better services for the people of Afghanistan – while maintaining and expanding on the important democratic reforms and advances in women's rights that have been made since 2001. We will work with the Afghan government to implement a system for evaluating progress and adapting programs as the situation on the ground evolves. Our focused strategy reflects the urgency President Obama has directed to reverse negative trends in Afghanistan. It consists of the following key elements, which are integrated and synchronized with military activities to achieve short, medium, and long-term objectives. The success of civilian programs depends on an improving security environment in Afghanistan. Pakistan: A major focus of the President's policy review was the importance of Pakistan to our efforts in Afghanistan, to regional stability, and to our national security and foreign policy interests. There remains mistrust between our two countries, but we see a critical window of opportunity created by the recent transition to democratic, civilian rule and the broad, sustained political support across Pakistan for military operations against extremists. We seek to lead the international community in helping Pakistan overcome the political, economic, and security challenges that threaten its stability, and in turn undermine regional stability. And we seek to build a long-term partnership with Pakistan based on common interests, including a recognition that we cannot tolerate a safe haven for terrorists whose location is known and whose intentions are clear.

Compares the reasons for and the responses to the insurgencies in Afghanistan and Pakistan since October 2001. Also examines the lack of security and the support of insurgent groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan since the 1970s that explain the rise of the Pakistan-supported Taliban. Explores the border tribal areas between the two countries and how they influence regional stability and U.S. security. Explains the implications of what happened during this 10-year period to provide candid insights on the prospects and risks associated with bringing a durable stability to this area of the world.

Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) has been a recognized safe haven for al Qaeda leadership and a base for the Taliban to launch cross-border attacks into Afghanistan. The U.S., in an effort to assist Pakistan in addressing this threat, pledged $750 million between 2007 and 2011 to support development activities in the FATA region. This report focuses on: (1) the extent U.S. development objectives align with U.S. national security goals and Pakistan's objectives; (2) U.S. efforts to track the pledge; (3) U.S. efforts to measure performance in the FATA; and (4) efforts to monitor assistance in the FATA. The auditor interviewed U.S. and Pakistani officials in Wash., D.C., and Pakistan. Includes recommendations. Charts and tables.

Terrorism: Commentary on Security Documents Volume 103, Global Issues, continues the recent changes to this series that have justified a new publisher-brand, a new title, and a re-designed cover. That new title emphasizes the expert commentary now provided by three leading scholars in the field: Doug Lovelace, Director of the Army War College's Strategic Studies Institute, Kristen Boon of Seton Hall Law School, and Aziz Huq of the University of Chicago School of Law. In this particular volume, Lovelace updates researchers on new developments in various regions of the world. He devotes many pages to the debacle along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, where Pakistan harbors extremists conducting the insurgency in Afghanistan. Both the documents selected by Lovelace and his insightful commentary describe how the U.S., under advice from Special Envoy Dick Holbrooke, has changed its approach to the problem by treating Afghanistan and Pakistan as one party instead of two. Volume 103 ("Global Issues") also examines the complex issue of China's possible assistance to terrorists overseas. For example, some weapons used against coalition forces in Afghanistan originate from China, despite China's promise to help the U.S. in its war against terror. Lovelace and the documents he presents also assess India's measured, thoughtful reaction to allegations that Pakistan facilitated the November terrorist attacks in Mumbai. The volume also alerts readers to disturbing developments in South America, where such groups as FARC in Colombia and The Shining Path in Peru have persisted in their profit-seeking campaigns of violence, despite those countries' general success in diminishing their power.