Author: James Dao
Publication: The New York Times
Date: February 13, 2003
The senior members of the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee said today that they were deeply concerned
that elements of Pakistan's government were helping to undermine the stability
of Afghanistan, including the possibility that they were sheltering Taliban
fighters along the border.
The senators - Richard G. Lugar,
Republican of Indiana, and Joseph R. Biden Jr., Democrat of Delaware -
said they did not believe that Pakistan's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf,
was involved in the destabilizing activities.
But the lawmakers, citing news reports,
said there was evidence that elements of Pakistan's powerful Interservices
Intelligence agency might be helping members of the Taliban and Al Qaeda
operate along the border and infiltrate into Afghanistan. The senators
also raised concerns that Iran was assisting the warlord Ismail Khan in
western Afghanistan.
Pakistan's intelligence service
is "once again either turning a blind eye to or cooperating with" Pashtun
groups opposed to the Afghan government of President Hamid Karzai, said
Mr. Biden, the committee's ranking Democrat, during a hearing on the reconstruction
of Afghanistan. The Taliban was composed mainly of Pashtun tribesmen from
southern Afghanistan.
Mr. Lugar, the committee chairman,
said elements of Pakistan's intelligence service, which supported the Taliban
in the 1990's, appeared to be trying to gain influence in Afghanistan by
allowing Taliban fighters to infiltrate across the border, where they have
been attacking Afghan and American soldiers.
"This is international politics
impinging on a small country," Mr. Lugar said.
Responding to the senators' concerns,
two senior administration officials said they thought the situation was
not as dangerous as Mr. Lugar and Mr. Biden had suggested, and they praised
General Musharraf as a firm ally in the war on terrorism.
But one of the officials, Peter
W. Rodman, the assistant secretary of defense for international security
affairs, acknowledged that Afghanistan's "neighboring countries would like
to have a hand in it."
During a visit to Washington last
week, Pakistan's foreign minister denied assertions that the intelligence
service was assisting the Taliban. But because of the service's history
of close ties to the Taliban, many American officials believe elements
of the service have been providing aid to Taliban and Qaeda units operating
in the mountains and caves of southeastern Afghanistan, often crossing
from the neighboring tribal areas of Pakistan.
Some American officials, for example,
contend that the intelligence service may have provided money, weapons
and broadcast equipment to Taliban fighters now in Pakistan to transmit
anti-Karzai, anti-American messages into Afghanistan.
But those officials contend it has
never been clear whether senior Pakistani intelligence officials are condoning,
or even supporting the pro-Taliban activities, or whether such support
comes from rogue elements or retired intelligence officers claiming to
work for the government.
During the hearing, Republican and
Democrat senators urged the administration to support an expansion of the
international security unit that now patrols Kabul, so that it can maintain
a presence in other Afghan cities.
Afghanistan's ambassador to the
United States, Ishaq Shahryar, told the committee that Afghanistan is at
the center of a "circle of instability" and that it could not attract foreign
investment until security is improved.
"I urge this committee to continue
to support the expansion of ISAF," the ambassador said, referring to the
4,600-soldier security unit, known as the International Security Assistance
Force.
But Mr. Rodman argued that the United
States, which has 7,000 troops in Afghanistan, is already contributing
to maintaining the country's stability by hunting for Taliban and Qaeda
forces on the Pakistan border. He said no other coalition countries are
willing to provide troops for expanding the peacekeeping force, which is
currently under joint German and Dutch command.
As an alternative, he said the United
States is stationing small groups of Special Forces and coalition troops
in a handful of cities, where they can provide protection to aid workers
and Western diplomats. But several of the senators said they thought that
more was needed.
