Posted on 01/02/2003 8:58:29 AM PST by Destro
Jan 3, 2003
COMMENTARY
Pakistan bent on proliferation path
By Stephen Blank
The year 2002 was punctuated by crises either instigated or abetted by proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The war against al-Qaeda, the Korean crisis, the imminent war against Iraq, and even the Israel-Palestinian conflict were all aggravated by and subjected to the stresses that this issue puts upon governments as they seek security and/or peace.
Indeed, proliferation plus terrorism has proven to be an especially destructive trend that has come close to undermining not just peace but even entire governments, particularly in Pakistan. Therefore, one may have been entitled to hope that the Pakistani government had begun to see the light. Unfortunately, this has not happened. Indeed, according to Indian officials' charges, Pakistan has recently increased the flow of terrorists to Kashmir. Moreover, according to recent media reports, Pakistan continues to be instrumental in fueling major proliferation crises large and small, imminent and somewhat more distant.
Pakistan's role in abetting North Korea's proliferation is incontestable. Indeed, it plays a dual role here. On the one hand, by being an eager customer for Pyongyang's knowhow and weapons it provides that country with much of the cash needed to keep its programs going. On the other hand, Pakistan has more recently supplied North Korea with essential components needed for its nuclear program. Thus Pakistan's relationship with North Korea reinforces both states' proliferation at both ends of this process, obtaining the cash needed to pay for ongoing proliferation and transferring or selling the necessary materials to the proliferator.
In this way, the Pakistani-North Korea relationship perfectly epitomizes the phenomenon known as tertiary proliferation, whereby newly nuclear states or new aspirants to that status assist each other, and by doing so obtain technological, military, or financial, as well as political benefits from their relationship. It may also be the case that Pakistan acts as a middleman for a third party, in this case China, that does not want its shipments to North Korea to be directly traceable. If that is the case, Pakistan would then resemble Ukraine and Belarus, which assist proliferation and arms sales to "rogue states" on their own and are regularly used by Russian firms and authorities as middlemen for deals that Moscow does not want traced back to it.
But this policy of supporting North Korea in both aspects of its proliferation policies, sales and research and development, has a boomerang effect for Pakistan, not to mention a globally destabilizing quality. Israeli officials have revealed their assessment that the recent shipment of Scud missiles that Yemen supposedly bought from North Korea were going to Baghdad, not Sanaa. And North Korea has now launched a crisis that could easily inflame all of Northeast Asia. It is hard to see what gains, pecuniary or otherwise, justify Pakistan's efforts to strengthen the reckless regime in Pyongyang or to directly challenge the vital interests of the United States, its sole real protector. Yet that is what it has done.
Nor has it stopped here. On December 23 last year, Pakistan and Iran agreed to bury their hatchet from the days of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan and to exchange military delegations. This action is almost always a prelude to arms sales, so we can expect open announcement of various conventional weapon sales to Iran, the number one state sponsor of international terrorism. But it would hardly be surprising if, along with those open sales, there were covert transfers of nuclear-related technologies, given Iran's naked aspiration to become a nuclear power as soon as possible. Moreover, Iran has already threatened to extend deterrence to Hizbullah terrorists in Lebanon should Israel attempt to retaliate against their attacks. Thus, future arms deals with Iran could easily fuel the fires of another Middle East war besides the imminent one against Iraq. Although Iranian-Pakistani relations have never reached the point of imminent conflict resembling India-Pakistan relations; nevertheless, it does not seem to be the most farsighted policy to assist a neighbor and potential rival who is a notorious sponsor of terrorism in its quest for nuclear weapons.
Furthermore, on the very same day a former chief of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), its intelligence agency and the organization having operational responsibility for the recruitment of many of the Taliban and other Islamic terrorists of the past decade, confirmed in writing that Pakistan defied the United Nations ban on supply of arms to the Bosnian Muslims by shipping them sophisticated anti-tank missiles. He clearly justified this activity by alleging that he had done so to rescue persecuted Muslims. In other words, these covert arms sales, and helping the mujahideen to take power in Afghanistan in 1992, among other possible operations, were justified because as "a true, practicing Muslim, he would not compromise on the interests of Islam and Pakistan". Here we see how religion can serve as a justification of gunrunning and proliferation, even if only of conventional systems, in defiance of international agreements.
Since we know that various terrorist organizations, including al-Qaeda, are active in Bosnia and Kosovo, this evidence raises the possibility that Pakistan or elements in the Pakistani intelligence and defense sector are supplying those forces with weapons despite international prohibitions.
(Excerpt) Read more at atimes.com ...
Well,in the last 25 years,the major financier and military sponsor of Pakistan was United States of America and "genius" Zbignew Bzezinsky!In his selective approach to the truth,the author of this article has forgoten to mention that Pakistan and Iran had explicit help of US Air Force in delivering weapons to Bosnian Muslims and braking UN embargo.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.