"Al Qaeda is already in possession of WMD"

* emptywheel has a big post on Rove. fascinating discussion in the comments as always (albeit dizzying in detail, as always)

* this from a commentor at EW's place

Emptywheel,

I agree with you that the military dictatorship of Pakistan is a greater WMD threat than Iran. After all, it was AQ Khan’s network that provided nuclear technology to the Iranians. You are also right that “the best focus of efforts right now is Pakistan, not Iran”; and that “until the U.S. begin to address the Pakistan problem it’s never going to address the real threat in Iran or anywhere else”.

I’ve personally met AQ Khan on a few occasions in Islamabad, and can assure you that he is simply an employee of the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, a subsidiary of Pakistan’s Ministry of Defense (MOD). In 1998, soon after Pakistan conducted six nuclear tests, Congress enacted the Pressler Amendment and imposed economic and military sanctions on Pakistan.

Due to financial constraints, MOD decided to sell nuclear technology to anyone who was willing to pay top dollar. Khan simply followed the orders of his bosses in uniform, and was given full military cover to conduct nuclear proliferation. He’s only the scapegoat; the real culprit is the Pakistani MOD, and as you’ve already heard that Khan’s rogue network is still operational. No wonder why Pakistani military regime is reluctant to allow Khan to be interrogated by the U.S. authorities.

I have strong reservations about your assertion that “if Musharraf fell, Al Qaeda could have the bomb within weeks”. For your information, it’s safe to assume that Al Qaeda is already in possession of WMD, and Hamas (supported by Iran) will soon have access to such weapons.

It was Pakistan’s spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) that created the Talibans in Pakistan and then sent them across its borders into Afghanistan. And, the ISI also facilitated the creation of Al Qaeda in the Pakistani city of Peshawar. To this day, ISI is providing logistic, training and weapons to these two terrorist organizations along with other Islamic terrorists groups, especially ones that have terrorized Kashmir region in India. Also, the world’s top three terrorists, Bin Laden, Al Zawahri, and Mullah Omar, are living in Pakistan under state protection. Arresting low-level operatives to appease Washington is only a ploy to be considered “an ally in the war against terrorism” and con military aid of about $650 million per year from U.S taxpayers.

During President Bush’s recent visit to Afghanistan, the Afghan President Hamid Karzai provided him with conclusive proof of ISI’s involvement in destabilizing Afghanistan. This is a very serious allegation because it means that any attack on U.S. and Coalition forces in Afghanistan by Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives is done with the consent and support of the Pakistani military regime. In other words, Pakistanis have waged a proxy war against the U.S. (Check article in the Investor’s Business Daily)

The British chief of staff for southern Afghanistan, Colonel Chris Vernon, added his voice to charges often made by Afghan officials that the Taliban leadership is coordinating its campaign from the Pakistani city of Quetta near the Afghan border.

"The thinking piece of the Taliban is out of Quetta in Pakistan. It's the major headquarters," he told the Guardian newspaper. "They use it to run a series of networks in Afghanistan."

By the way, there was no reason for the Pakistanis to succumb to U.S. pressure because of some textile deal! On January 2005, the World Trade Organization (WTO) was already going to abolish the textile quota regime, which restricted textile exports from Pakistan to the U.S. market. Hence, it was not in anyone’s interest to make such deals.

The truth of the matter is that the Pakistani military dictator Pervez Musharraf did not agree to cooperate with the U.S. after the tragic incident of 9/11. Only when President Bush challenged him to either face the U.S. military might, or join the U.S. and oust the Talibans, did Musharraf pragmatically teamed up with the Coalition forces and pretended to turn his back to the Talibans.

The wooing is not as much between Iran and Pakistan as it is between China and Pakistan. China has built listening posts at the Gwadar Port to monitor shipping lanes (and U.S. naval activities) at the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. There are over 2,000 Chinese working on various civilian and military projects throughout Pakistan worth over $5 billion. China has constructed highways through Pakistan to connect with the Arabian Sea. The Chinese are fortifying their positions in Pakistan while the U.S. is engaged in fighting a proxy war with Pakistani trained Al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan.

In short, Pakistan has played the Americans into believing that they are pro-American, while they were busy solidifying their position with China and supporting the Al Qaeda and Taliban to kill American soldiers.

Congress must realize that the most dangerous terrorist organization in the world is the Pakistani military regime that has ruled Pakistan (directly and indirectly) since 1947. All military assistance and economic aid to this rogue country must cease immediately. The most dangerous threat to U.S. national security now is how to dismantle and destroy Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.

Mir Azaad Khan Baloch
General Secretary
The Government of Balochistan in Exile

* sara is smart, and she agrees:

I agree with much of what Mir Azaad Khan Baloch has written above. The state of play for Pakistan is alliance with China in service of Pakistan's India circumstance that has existed since Partition. Just this week one of the major English Language Pakistani papers had a long detailed editorial regarding this -- I think it was the Tribune, but am not certain.

One matter that has suprised me is the lack of attention to Bush's Nuclear deal with India, to which Pakistan responded by advocating greater cooperation with China. All for an agreement on trade in Mangos? come on -- where is the US market for more mangos?

It might make sense to check in on the GenSec's blog every now and again.