Posted on 09/13/2006 4:19:28 AM PDT by Srirangan
West responsible for extremism: Musharraf
* President says Pakistan not inherently prone to terrorism or extremism
* Blames 1979 US mission in Afghanistan for militancy in region
BRUSSELS: President General Pervez Musharraf has blamed the West for breeding terrorism in his country by bringing in thousands of mujahideen to fight the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and then leaving Pakistan alone a decade later to face the armed warriors.
Musharraf told the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee on Tuesday that Pakistan was not the intolerant, extremist country often portrayed by the West, and terrorism and extremism were not inherent in Pakistani society. “Whatever extremism or terrorism is in Pakistan is a direct fallout of the 26 years of warfare and militancy around us. It gets back to 1979 when the West, the United States and Pakistan waged a war against the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan,” Musharraf told EU lawmakers.
“We launched a jihad, brought in mujahideen from all over the Muslim world, the US and the West…We armed the Taliban and sent them in; we did it together. In 1989 everyone left Pakistan with 30,000 armed mujahideen who were there, and the Taliban who were there,” he said, adding that Pakistan had “paid a big price for being part of the coalition that fought the Soviet Union.”
Musharraf said that the scourge of terrorism had been eliminated from Pakistan and that efforts were underway to root out extremism, but this would take time.
Musharraf also urged Pakistani expatriates to invest in Pakistan and to send maximum foreign exchange to boost the country’s economy. The president stressed that they play a role in enhancing the dignity and prestige of the country. He said that Pakistan and Belgium had strong economic ties, which needed further expansion.
He added that Pakistanis living in Belgium should further the country’s development. Musharraf also stressed on the need for the Pakistani community to impart modern education to their children. He informed the Pakistani community about the steps taken by government to boost the country’s economy, to provide basic facilities and to counter regional instability.
Gen Musharraf met with Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt later on Tuesday to discuss trade ties between their countries, and the situation in Afghanistan and Lebanon.
Mr Verhofstadt told reporters that Gen Musharraf had urged the EU to play a bigger role in finding a solution to the Middle East crisis.
European Commission President Jose Barroso announced after talks with Musharraf that Europe would increase development assistance to Pakistan from 2007. agencies
Musharraf is lying through his teeth (a common Pakistani trait). Much of the impetus given to fanatical Islam began when General Muhammad Zia al-Haq led a military coup that threw out the Bhutto government in 1977. He filled the military with Islamists, funded thousands of Islamist madrassas, and allowed the schools to teach military training. Within a year of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979, Al-Haq was working with Saudi Arabia to send thousands of Afghan-Arabs to fight in Afghanistan; he allowed more than 100,000 Pakistani jihadists to do likewise. He introduced terrorism into Kashmir and gave the military assignment to -- you guessed it -- Musharraf who had joined the army in 1964 and served with no particular distinction until being picked by Al-Haq to raise hell with India. Al Haq was responsible for arming the Hizb-e Islam and set up a likeminded Islamist movement in the Harakat al-Jihadi Islami which Musharraf helped train. The USA did not really jump into this fray until Reagan was elected and in 1983, at CIA's Casey prompting began to fund the mujahideen. After that, the CIA served as paymaster, not drill sergeant for the anti-Soviet affair. The training of mujahideen who later joined the Al Qaeda was a Pakistani affair, of which Musharraf is perfectly aware. This self-serving bit of twaddle is what one can expect of a South Asian Muslim leader.
I just read a Pakistan summary at the Library of Congress.
All I read was a back and forth of funding, no funding, funding, no funding.
Is it as simple as this, we caused it because we didn't give them enough money? Or were we involved militarily too?
I'm not being flip; I don't know the history.
As far as I know Carter's monumental disgrace and debacle in 1979 was the Iran hostage crisis. I don't recall any involvement in Afghanistan. But if there was Carter would have supported the Soviet Union! (Just kidding!)
How much more did Reagan do? I thought Carter already had invited in the Arabs and armed them to fight the Russians, and Reagan just continued that support. But my memory of that time is clouded, I just remember Reagan being shot in March after only 2 months of his presidency.
No, I am wrong. Sorry about that.
Although this history does suggest that, knowing what we know now about islamic extremists, we might have backed the wrong side of the war, and Russia may have had good reason to attack Afghanistan.
They were our sworn enemy, but they've had to deal with muslim extremists attacking their country for a lot longer than we have.
If Jimmy Carter had helped the Shah and got him to have reforms we would face a different world. Any remember Andy Young's statement on the New Iran ( which led to his landslide lost) that the new leaders in Iran are great men.
Dear Purvez,
An unexpected accounting error has led to the United States invoking the frangible export tax mentioned in subsection B of the amended arms transfer agreement of October, 2004.
At your earliest convenience, please remit an additional $26 million USD per F-16 airframe, to continue delivery on a timely manner.
Please be advised, we are looking into the unexplained shipping delays for your spare and replacement parts for these aircraft, including the enabling key encryption codes for operating the aircraft you have already received, and will transfer our findings to you on receipt of your check for the above amount.
Happy flying,
Your good friend,
George W. Bush
well...well...well...
look what the cat drug in...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1700544/posts
'nother day, 'nother dollar...
the muslims are still angry that we pulled out of the olympics around that time.
Of course you're right and it's all worthless hind-sight speculation to think the way I was thinking.
Russia had no good reason to attack Afghanistan, other than conquest and the spread of Communism. As for Russia itself, has had to deal with Muslim extremists for a millenium; the impact has been so enduring that the nation is really Asian rather than European.
The past is the past. Pakistan is the problem today.
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