ISI chief heads to US as ties nosedive

WASHINGTON: Pakistan's spy chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha, who heads the country's ISI, an organization accused by the United States of terrorist links and of murdering its own citizens, is arriving in Washington for talks aimed ostensibly at defusing tensions with the Obama administration.
The sudden, unexpected visit comes on the heels of mildly punitive US action including withholding $800 million military aid to Pakistan following US allegations that the Pakistani government "sanctioned" the murder of a journalist and that the ISI continues to foster terrorist groups in Pakistan at the expense of cooperation with Washington.
In a brief, one-line statement, Pakistan's military, de facto rulers of the country, said Pasha was going to Washington to "coordinate intelligence matters".
Pasha himself is under the gun, since he is listed as an accused in the 26/11 Mumbai attack case in a NY court case. His visit also comes on the heels of the assassination in Kandahar of Afghanistan president Karzai's half-brother Ahmed Wali Karzai.
The mood in Washington is decidedly hostile towards Pakistan, particularly the ISI, with sections of the US establishment wanting Pasha's ouster. A New York Times editorial last week, prompted by the Obama administration's views on the matter, said Pakistan's weak civilian government could re-establish its bonafides "by insisting on retirement of Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the ISI chief, and the appointment of a more credible successor."
"The US needs to use its influence to hasten Pasha's departure. It should tell Pakistan's security leadership that if Washington identifies anyone in ISI or the army as abetting terrorists, those individuals will face sanctions like travel bans or other measures. The ISI has become inimical to Pakistani and American interests," it said.
The Obama administration has held back some $ 800 in military aid to Pakistan, including $ 300 million earmarked for training programs which Pakistan's military scrapped by denying visas to U.S trainers and expelling those already in Pakistan. Pakistan's military fears that the trainers are being used to infiltrate the armed forces and hire spies to track down its assets, both human and technical.

Posted in: General Talks,World News