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Journalism of Courage
As US President Barack Obama promotes his restructured Af-Pak strategy on the international stage this week,India has reasons to be pleased and concerned. The good news from the much touted review,announced by Obama last Friday,comes from his diagnosis of the problem. He has taken on board much of Indias own analysis of the challenges confronting the world in the badlands between the Indus and the Hindu Kush. He agrees with India that Pakistan is the source of Afghanistans insecurity and the world must act together to cure Islamabad of its political malaise. In recognising that the borderlands between Pakistan and Afghanistan constitute the single most important threat to global peace and security,arguing that Islamabad is part of the problem rather than the solution,and asking India to join an international concert in managing the Af-Pak region,he has made welcome departures from the American policy towards South Asia since September 11,2001.
The bad news for India,however,comes from the lack of a fundamental change in the operational dynamic of the US strategy towards Pakistan. Cut to the bone,Obamas approach is no different from that of George W. Bush. Obama continues to rely on the Pakistan army to deliver on American and international goals in Afghanistan. Obama has simply offered a higher hafta,or rental,to the Pakistan army but has promised to tie it to specific benchmarks. Having seen the Pakistan army take the American security establishment on a ride so very often in the last six decades,India cant be blamed for its scepticism.
