http://www.bostonherald.com/news/opinion/op_ed/view/20110818us-pakistani_tie s_in_a_tailspin/
U.S.-Pakistani ties in a tailspin By Peter Brookes Thursday, August 18, 2011 - If true, America should be outraged that Pakistan reportedly gave China access to the tail section of a downed U.S. "stealth" Black Hawk helicopter that was involved in the Osama bin Laden take-down in May. China and Pakistan deny the matter, but we shouldn't really be shocked. In fact, the troubling twist of events should serve to better inform our thinking about Washington's relationship with Islamabad. Sure, some assert that giving Chinese spies a peek at the chopper was just a fit of Pakistani pique over having been roundly embarrassed by the raid on Osama's compound. But, it's almost certainly more than that. First, Islamabad and Beijing have been tight for half a century, especially since the Chinese fought a 1962 border war against their mutual rival and neighbor: India. China is a major arms supplier to Pakistan, helping Islamabad distract and balance New Delhi. Beijing helped Islamabad develop its nuclear weapons, sold it nuclear-capable ballistic missiles and co-produces jet fighters with it, too. In return, Pakistanis give the Chinese access to Arabian Sea ports near the oil-rich Persian Gulf and try to keep the lid on Islamist extremists who may be training or plotting in Pakistan for attacks in China's restive Muslim West. Plus, China is involved in a disturbing military buildup and getting their hands on advanced U.S. technology is Beijing's high spy priority. The Black Hawk's tail section, especially its design and coating, would be of interest to China's military, which sees us as a likely future foe. This incident should clarify that Pakistan, while no enemy of the U.S., is no ally either. It's unlikely Islamabad is in our corner on fighting terrorism or Afghanistan. The U.S.-Pakistan relationship continues to reach new lows, giving rise to what should be a serious policy pause, including continuing to condition American security aid on counterterrorism cooperation. This latest report out of Pakistan should serve as another caution sign to us as we stumble forward with Islamabad on issues of common concern. Forewarned is forearmed. Peter Brookes is a Heritage Foundation senior fellow and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense. Talk back at peterbroo...@heritage.org. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, discuss-os...@yahoogroups.com. -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor biso...@intellnet.org http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: osint-subscr...@yahoogroups.com Unsubscribe: osint-unsubscr...@yahoogroups.com *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtmlYahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: osint-dig...@yahoogroups.com osint-fullfeatu...@yahoogroups.com <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: osint-unsubscr...@yahoogroups.com <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
