Afghan war can’t be won without Pakistan in the hunt: NYT

WASHINGTON - There is a limited chance of success in the Afghanistan war unless Pakistan hunts down insurgents operating from havens on its Afghan border, says the New York Times quoting two new intelligence reports.

The reports, coming ahead of the release of the latest Afghan strategy review, say that although there have been gains for the US and NATO in the war, the unwillingness of Pakistan to shut down militant sanctuaries in its lawless tribal region remains a serious obstacle, the influential US daily stated.

American military commanders cited by the Times say insurgents freely cross from Pakistan into Afghanistan to plant bombs and fight American troops and then return to Pakistan for rest and re-supply.

The findings in the reports, called National Intelligence Estimates, represent the consensus view of the US’ 16 intelligence agencies, as opposed to the military, and were provided last week to some members of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees, the Times said.

The intelligence reports, which rely heavily on assessments from the CIA and the Defense Intelligence Agency, conclude that CIA drone strikes on leaders of Al Qaeda in the tribal regions of Pakistan have had an impact and that security has improved in the parts of Helmand and Kandahar Provinces in southern Afghanistan where the US has built up its troop presence, it said.

For their part, American commanders and Pentagon officials say they do not yet know if the war can be won without more cooperation from Pakistan, the Times said.

“But after years and billions spent trying to win the support of the Pakistanis, they are now proceeding on the assumption that there will be limited help from them.”

The American commanders and officials readily describe the havens for insurgents in Pakistan as a major impediment to military operations, the Times said.

Publicly, American officials and military commanders continue to praise Pakistan and its military chief, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, if only for acknowledging the problem, it said.

But many Afghan officials cited by the US daily say that the US, which sends Pakistan about $2 billion in military and civilian aid each year, is coddling Pakistan to no end.

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)