Ghost Wars: Steve Coll

Insight:

The September 11th attack on the twin towers was and continues to be a watershed moment in the post-industrialised world. It ushered in a conflict that the victim could not win, despite the power and military advantage it possessed over its ragtag adversary. After 20 years of prolonged battle, the outcome is a bloody nose. The United States is the world leader in technology, manpower, and diplomacy, but its carrot-and-stick approach has not yielded the intended results, owing to its complicated political and military apparatus.

It gathered Mujahadeen, including Hikmaryar, Mullah Umer, Ahmed Shah Massoud, and others, but it was unable to assemble the Pashtun. Ahmed Shah Massoud, although being formed by Pakistan, the KSA and the US got estranged from Pakistan and went their separate ways. When he colluded with India against Pakistan, Pakistan, being naturally paranoid, saw him as the enemy. The issues concerning Afghanistan are complicated, and the book could not justify the diversity of the population and their interests. However, there are certain lessons to be learned:

1. As a superpower, the United States has a propensity to take charge of everything, and when things go wrong, they have the audacity to blame everyone but themselves. Throughout the book, Steve Coll gave the notion that Pakistan alone should be blamed for the Afghanistan catastrophe leading up to 9/11 while forgetting that it was the US that actually made conditions worse. It trained, sponsored, and nurtured regressive Islamic doctrines from 1979 until 1990, then abandoned them. The poor and highly trained gorilla product of the United States, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan was suddenly homeless, jobless, and in desperate need of money. Al-Qaeda took advantage of this, and the end effect can be seen here.
2. Pakistan’s troubles with India have historically exacerbated Pakistan’s problems in Afg. When it required mullahs and radicals, it developed, trained, and sponsored them, then used them against its own people, opponents, and civilian governments. This is not to say that the Civilian administration was innocent.

Lesson for Pakistan

Pakistan must slow down and behave in accordance with its stated intentions. The Taliban in Afghanistan are not buddies, and that is a reality. It will be another issue for Pakistan as it pursues a policy of Taliban appeasement. They are still nationalists, and the Pashtun Belt will fall under the Taliban, resulting in a loss for Pakistan. Pakistan need a policy that is focused on the reality of the relationship rather than on religion. Because anything and everything may go South at any time with the Taliban.