CIA paid millions of dollars to ISI since 9/11

The Economic Times ^ | 11/16/2009 | The Economic Times

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

The CIA has paid millions of dollars to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) since 9/11, "accounting for as much as one-third of the foreign spy agency's annual budget", says a media report.

The ISI also collected "tens of millions of dollars through a classified CIA programme", which pays for the capture or killing of wanted militants, a newspaper reported on Monday citing current and former US officials.

An intense debate has been triggered within the US government due to "long-standing suspicions that the ISI continues to help Taliban extremists who undermine US efforts in Afghanistan and provide sanctuary to Al Qaeda members in Pakistan".

But US officials have continued to make the payments as ISI's assistance is considered critical: "Almost every major terrorist plot this decade has originated in Pakistan's tribal belt, where ISI informant networks are a primary source of intelligence."

The report went on to say that the payments to Pakistan are authorised under a covert programme initially approved by then president Bush and continued under President Obama.

"The ISI has used the covert CIA money for a variety of purposes, including the construction of a new headquarters in Islamabad, the capital. That project pleased CIA officials because it replaced a structure considered vulnerable to attack; it also eased fears that the US money would end up in the private bank accounts of ISI officials."

"What we didn't want to happen was for this group of generals in power at the time to just start putting it in their pockets or building mansions in Dubai," a former CIA operative was quoted as saying.

CIA officials argue that their own disbursements - particularly the bounties for suspected terrorists - should be considered a bargain.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

"There really are two ISIs," the former CIA operative said.On the counter-terrorism side, those guys were in lock-step with us," the former operative said. "And then there was the 'long-beard' side. Those are the ones who created the Taliban and are supporting groups like Haqqani

[stevie_d_64]

Paid millions of dollars, and all we got (well not even that) was a lousy t-shirt???

We got ripped!!!

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

I am concerned that our money is going into funding the radical Islamists within Pakistani Intelligence.

[stevie_d_64]

Bingo!!! Kinda silly that there is an inhierant risk of paying money to folks who want to kill us...

[stevie_d_64]

Kinda defeats the purpose...

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

I agree.

[marron]

The ISI is a highly compartmentalised intelligence service, with divisions that sometimes seem at odds with one another. Units that work closely with the CIA are walled off from a highly secretive branch that has directed insurgencies in Afghanistan and Kashmir, the report said. "There really are two ISIs," the former CIA operative said. "On the counter-terrorism side, those guys were in lock-step with us," the former operative said. "And then there was the 'long-beard' side.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

How can we trust these people? They are already suspected in passing secrets to the Taliban.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

How can we trust these people? They are already suspected in passing secrets to the Taliban.

[marron]

They are already suspected in passing secrets to the Taliban.

The "long beard" half of the ISI are the sponsors of the Taliban. They probably are Taliban themselves. They are the sponsors of the Kashmiri rebels, and their commanders as well.

So its a problem. We have to work with these jaybirds and at least half of them not only support the enemy, they most probably are the enemy. To a degree, the war in Pakistan is a civil war, with both Grant and Lee wearing the same uniforms and we're never sure which is which, and probably they aren't either. Maybe Grant hopes Lee will win.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

I say just cut them off completely but you can’t because they have the bomb. So we are stuck with people who hate us.

[swarthyguy]

Not really news, is it.

Funny how these Sun rises in East Today stories rise up, only to sink against the weight of our inability to deal effectively with Pakistan.

Some pithy links and quotes...detailed and extensive, head spinning.....SAAG has a bunch of recent stuff connecting what seems a full blown jihadi cell in the Chicago Pakistani Consulate, the meat plant bust and assorted other sordid machinations of the Pakistani State and Army in America. Yup, that’s my stand and I’m sitting right by it!

http://www.southasiaanalysis.org/papers36/paper3505.html

SPECIAL SERVICES GROUP & PAK-SPONSORED TERRORISM-INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR: PAPER NO.578
By B.Raman

Pakistani generals linked to US terror suspects
By Bill RoggioNovember 13, 2009 11:27 PM

Read more: http://www.longwarjournal.org/threat-matrix/archives/2009/11/pakistani_generals_linked_to_u.php#ixzz0X9130o0Q

---

The jihadi picture in Pakistan is getting murkier and murkier. Nobody——neither Pakistan’s political and military leaders nor the US intelligence agencies and military leadership nor the mushrooming community of terrorism analysts all over the world—— seems to understand what the hell is going on in Pakistan, which is inexorably becoming a country beyond understanding and beyond redemption.

B. Raman

[swarthyguy]

Here’s a slightly more cynical (aka realist) take on the story you’ve posted.

From Orbat.com - the rest of today’s piece is pretty good too.

Meanwhile, Washington Post quoting Los Angeles Times says that the CIA for years has been paying big bucks to the Pakistan ISI for information and support in capturing terrorists. The Washington Post’s source(s) say, by way of explanation, that there are now two ISIs, and the US supported one is walled off from the other ISI.

Our reaction? ROTFL. (Rolling on the floor laughing.) Either the source(s) is lying to protect the CIA from adverse reaction in the US, or the source(s) and the CIA are dreadfully naive. Two ISIs indeed!

As with any intelligence agency, the ISI has factions. But this walling off business is just moronic. If you know anything about the ISI, there is ONE AND ONLY ONE ISI. This is a highly motivated and highly disciplined agency that has just two objectives: (a) The maintenance of the Pakistan Army’s control over Pakistan, and (b) the execution of Pakistan’s security and intelligence policies. The notion that one part of the ISI is working for the Americans while the other part works against the Americans is absolute rubbish.

The entire ISI is working against the US while taking the Americans for a ride by throwing a few sops in the form of wanted terrorists. Very few of these men are among those terrorists who work for Pakistan. In almost all cases where Pakistan hands in a terrorist it has formerly protected, it’s because the man is being a bad boy and needs to go.

India puts N-plants on alert says Defense News: “Indian authorities have put security on high alert near nuclear plants and related facilities, following tips from the FBI. New Delhi is closely following the interrogation of U.S. citizen David Headley by the FBI and has sent senior intelligence agency officials to the United States to gather more information.” The story may be found at http://defensenews.com/story.php?i=4378482&c=ASI&s=TOP

[hennie pennie]

Say, I didn't realize that ALL nuclear power facilities in India have been on High Alert since early last November; I can find an actual THREAD with the information, but the info was posted --- as single posts --- several different messagethreads.

They also believe that there may be terror cells in "target" countries comprised of terrorists recruited in India.

Anyway, I suspect that this is the real reason why there was so little info about Dr. Cranswick going missing -- the disappearance of a nuclear scientist of his calibre is obviously being investigated, ya know???

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks hennie pennie.