By
Sajjad Shaukat
On 26th
of November 2011, the US-led NATO forces attacked two Pakistani check-posts on
Pak-Afghan border and martyred 24 Pakistani military personnel indiscriminately.
In this regard, two
American Apache helicopters and two F-15 Eagle fighter jets targeted the two
Pakistani posts, Boulder and Volcano, situated at Salala in the Baizai tehsil
of Mohmand Agency. The airstrike was carried out in two phases.
Notably, the aerial
attack was coordinated and deliberate, its second phase carried out by American
forces after the Pakistan Army informed the ISAF command that their forces were
attacking Pakistani troops–and despite this information, it continued.
In this context, a NATO
inquiry said that both sides had made mistakes. Pakistan categorically rejected
the inquiry report. It had earlier refused to be part of a joint inquiry. Top
Pakistan Army officials denied the attack was unintentional.
Reacting to the Salala
attack, Pakistan blocked the NATO ground lines of communication to Afghanistan
and demanded an apology before the supply line would be unblocked.
Pakistan’s parliament
unanimously approved recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on National
Security (PCNS) in connection with the re-engagement with the United States.
Besides other matters, the recommendations included an immediate cessation of
drone attacks and infiltration into Pakistani territory, entailing some
conditions regarding supply to NATO forces in Afghanistan across the country.
Besides, Pakistan should seek an unconditional apology from the US for November
26, 2011 unprovoked Salala check-posts assault.
Meanwhile, a number of
American diplomats including NATO chief had visited Islamabad and met the then
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Pervez
Kayani, asking them for re-opening the NATO routes. Setting aside the American
pressure, they reiterated that parliament in light of the PCNS recommendations
and the Defence Committee of Cabinet would decide on the issue of NATO supply,
after negotiating new relationship with the US, based upon equality and
non-violation of Pakistani territory.
When Pakistan government
remained stern on its stand by keeping the NATO supply lines suspended for the
six months in wake of US pressure tactics, on May 10, 2012, the United States
House Armed Services Committee approved a bill that would prohibit the
preferential procurement of goods or services from Pakistan until the “NATO
supply lines are reopened.”
Meanwhile, NATO
Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen suggested on May 11, 2012 that Pakistan
could miss out on important talks on the future of Afghanistan, if it failed to
reopen supply routes in time to secure a place at a NATO summit in Chicago on
May 20-21, 2012. Indirectly, he disclosed that Pakistan would not be invited to
participate in the summit.
On the other side, Prime
Minister Gilani confirmed that the Defence Committee of the Cabinet, would
debate as to how to repair relations with America in time to attend the NATO
summit in Chicago or to boycott it. While, the British Defence Minister Phillip
Hamond stated that negotiations on restoration of the NATO supply is
progressing in the right direction, but Pakistan would not accept any
pre-condition.
In these terms, Pak-US
war of nerves accelerated due to American coercive diplomacy towards Islamabad
coupled with its double game. In this regard, after the 9/11 tragedy, Pakistan
joined the US war against terrorism as frontline state and Islamabad was
granted the status of non-NATO ally by Washington because of its earlier
successes achieved by Pakistan’s Army and country’s Inter-Services Intelligence
(ISI) against the Al-Qaeda militants.
Within a few years, when
the US-led NATO forces felt that they were failing in coping with the stiff
resistance of the Taliban in Afghanistan, they started false allegations
against Pak Army and ISI of supporting the Afghan Taliban. US high officials
and their media not only blamed Pakistan for cross-border terrorism in
Afghanistan, but also continuously emphasized to ‘do more’ against the
insurgents in tribal areas by ignoring the internal backlash in the country
such as bomb basts and suicide attacks which killed thousands of innocent
people and personnel of the security.
Cold war had already
started between Pakistan and the United States when hundreds of CIA agents
entered Pakistan under the guise of diplomats to destabilize the country. On
January 11, 2011, Raymond Davis who was CIA agent killed two Pakistanis in
Lahore.
Since May 2, 2011,
Pak-US relations further deteriorated when without informing Islamabad, US
commandos killed Osama Bin Laden in a covert military operation. Afterwards,
tension intensified, as America continued its duress on Pakistan in wake of
drone attacks on FATA, while brushing aside parliament’s resolution in this
respect.
Differences also
increased between Islamabad and Washington, because Pakistan’s superior agency,
ISI interrupted covert activities of the American so-called diplomats. Notably,
ISI thwarted the anti-Pakistan activities of the agents of Blackwater and CIA
which had started recruiting Pakistani nationals who were vulnerable. In this
connection, with the pre-information of ISI, Pakistan’s police and other
security agencies arrested a number of secret agents. On many occasions, ISI
helped in stopping the clandestine activities of the CIA spies who were
displaying themselves as diplomats. On the information of this top spy agency,
Pakistan’s establishment expelled several American spies operating in the
country. On the other side, US withheld $800 million in military aid to punish
its army and ISI.
It was due to the
professional competence of ISI in foiling the anti-Pakistan plot that US and
India including their media accelerated deliberate propaganda against ISI.
Nevertheless, in the
aftermath of the November 26 incident in Mohmand Agency, Pakistan’s bold steps
such as vacation of the Shamsi Airbase, boycott the second Bonn Conference and
rejection of the US investigation report regarding the deliberate attack on
Salala Army check-posts accelerated tension between Islamabad and Washington.
Some American top
officials accused Pakistan-based Haqqani militants behind the well-coordinated
attacks in Afghanistan, which occurred on April 15, 2012. US aim was to
pressurize Islamabad for restoration of the NATO transit routes.
It is mentionable that
confused in their goals, sometimes US high officials praised Pak sacrifices
regarding war on terror, sometimes, admitted that stability cannot be achieved
in Afghanistan without the help of Pakistan after the withdrawal of foreign
troops, sometimes, threatened Islamabad to abandon the Pakistan-Iran gas
pipeline project and sometimes, realized that US wants to improve its
relationship with Pakistan, but at the same time, they blame Islamabad for
safe-havens of militants in the country. While in connivance with India and
Israel, America has been continuing its anti-Pakistan activities by supporting
militancy in Pakistan and separatism in Balochistan.
Nonetheless, after the
Salala incident, Pak-US war of nerves continued, it took the relationship of
both the countries to the point of no return. On July 3, 2012, Defence
Committee of the Cabinet permitted NATO supplies across the country to Afghanistan
after the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton apologized the killing of 24
Pakistani soldiers in November 2011 by American air strike on Slalala check
posts by saying “sorry”.
Sajjad Shaukat writes on
international affairs and is author of the book: US vs Islamic Militants,
Invisible Balance of Power: Dangerous Shift in International Relations
Email:
sajjad_logic@yahoo.com
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