No Progress in Pakistan... For Us, At Least

With references to "not another Vietnam" the US military has been very careful about how they resource their troops, the missions they give them, and way in which is they present the messages back home. Additionally, the US public has been very careful not to place any sort of blame on the soldiers for policies with which they disagree. All well and good. However, maybe the lesson we haven't yet learned from Vietnam is to not allow the enemy the ability to hide across the border in a nation that shows little inclination or ability to keep them out.

Pakistan’s government has made little progress in the past year in battling militants, and there is “no clear path toward defeating the insurgency” in the country, according to a White House report that comes as the U.S. struggles to build it’s often shaky relationship with Islamabad.

While sections of the report tout military gains in Afghanistan, it says the security situation in parts of Pakistan’s border regions has deteriorated since fighting resumed in the last part of 2010. And it raises concerns about ongoing political and economic problems on which Pakistan’s government cannot make progress.

U.S. officials agree that Pakistan is critical to U.S. efforts to defeat al-Qaida, since the terror group’s leaders — including Osama bin Laden — are believed to be hiding in safe havens along the country’s mountainous border. And the Pentagon has worked to bolster the Pakistani government’s counterinsurgency program with money and training, and to encourage cross-border cooperation with Afghanistan.

By: Brant