Pakistan takes control of Shamsi airbase as US forces leave

[The Messiah]

US can announce they are cutting aid to Pakistan soon that will be worst than anything Pakistan can do to USA.

What nonsensical map is that ?

 

[Galaxy]

There is one more route which i read sometime back.

Turkey --> Armenia --> Azerbaijan --> Caspian sea --> Turkmenistan --> A'than (Mostly U.S. allies)


Distance between Karachi - Kandhar/Kabul is shorter vis-a-vis CAR but one need to remember that US has to deliver the things 1st to Karachi which itself is big route.

 

[Galaxy]

Policy-makers in Washington have long planned for such a contingency. Since 2005, many U.S. government contracts have specified that fuel should be sourced from countries north of Afghanistan. By 2010, northern sources were a requirement in tenders that cited potential "mission failure" due to disruptions in Pakistan.

"If you look at the trajectory, it's clear which way the relationship is going. It will be difficult to overcome yet another serious problem. The policy implication is that we need to diversify (transit routes) as much as we can and as quickly as we can. That's what the U.S. government has been all about recently," said a U.S. government official.

"But the real question is whether the NDN can fully compensate for what's happened in Pakistan. We have a good NDN, but we also have Central Asian roads that are not the best," he added. The NDN's rail component is expected to pick up most of the extra freight volume.

Dec 8,2011 -- AFGHANISTAN: The Pressure Is Now on Central Asian Supply Route - IPS ipsnews.net

 

[IBSA]

what are the maps' source?

Because in a work's quote is necessary put it.

 

[W.G.Ewald]

Ferry between Baku and Turkmenbashi?

 

[SADAKHUSH]

India can use this opportunity to mediate between Iran and USA for possibly giving US access to Chabbar port. Seems like a long shot but thing always change.

It is easier said than done. Your point is well taken. I would like this to happen as well. If India can bring Myanmar and USA together,than why not Iran and USA? How difficult it will be for them to give up old rivalry and start allover again to establish relationship based on mutual interests in the region? Can USA convince Saudi Arabia and Israel to come abroad as well in normalizing the relationship? In my opinion USA should stay in Afghanistan till the country has a well institutions to take the country next stage of development in education field and industrial development. My questions might be off the topic but are relevant to the goals USA wants to achieve in order to secure the least expensive delivery route without political uncertainty of the CAR nations.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

I think this might be easier than building Zaranj-Delaram highway in Afghanistan thru the heart of taliban opium fields.

India builds important road-link joining Afghanistan with Iran

India builds important road-link joining Afghanistan with Iran

 

[SADAKHUSH]

I think this might be easier than building Zaranj-Delaram highway in Afghanistan thru the heart of taliban opium fields.

India builds important road-link joining Afghanistan with Iran

India builds important road-link joining Afghanistan with Iran

Can you just answer the questions in detail asked in my previous post? What USA has to do is construct a road to the heart of present Iran regime? What kind of concessions they will have to make to achieve the objective of access to Iran port? Will USA let them get away with a nuclear bomb in order to get access to the port?

 

[LETHALFORCE]

http://axisoflogic.com/artman/uploads/1/NATO-_Afghan_supply_routes.jpg

 

[Galaxy]

It is easier said than done. Your point is well taken. I would like this to happen as well. If India can bring Myanmar and USA together,than why not Iran and USA? How difficult it will be for them to give up old rivalry and start allover again to establish relationship based on mutual interests in the region? Can USA convince Saudi Arabia and Israel to come abroad as well in normalizing the relationship? In my opinion USA should stay in Afghanistan till the country has a well institutions to take the country next stage of development in education field and industrial development. My questions might be off the topic but are relevant to the goals USA wants to achieve in order to secure the least expensive delivery route without political uncertainty of the CAR nations.

It's not going to happen. Be sure on that. Hatred between Iran Vs U.S. (Arab, Israel) is too deep.

U.S.is planning to attack Iran. (They didn't attacked till date because it's already general Muslims perception that U.S. is attacking only Muslim countries). But It's matter of time, Iran will face the consequence.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Can you just answer the questions in detail asked in my previous post? What USA has to do is construct a road to the heart of present Iran regime? What kind of concessions they will have to make to achieve the objective of access to Iran port? Will USA let them get away with a nuclear bomb in order to get access to the port?

They have already let Iran get away with it, if pakistan can so can others must be the view being taken?? Concessions would be worked out . Look at map above Iranian route is most feasible but politically most difficult.

 

[SADAKHUSH]

Ferry between Baku and Turkmenbashi?

To achieve the goal USA will have to go through set of three nations, whereas through Iran it will be just one nation. If India can broker a deal to normalize USA-Iran relationship there is nothing better than that. I have asked few questions to LETHALFORCE in this thread, Can you please give your views on the same as well from the perspective of American citizen?

 

[SADAKHUSH]

They have already let Iran get away with it, if pakistan can so can others must be the view being taken?? Concessions would be worked out . Look at map above Iranian route is most feasible but politically most difficult.

How can the political roadblock be over come since there are more than just one player in the USA team? Is this going to require the change of leadership in Iran? If so can Iranians delver that to USA? Are they waiting for successful end to the Syria agitation and than start the same in Iran? Even if Iran has a nuclear weapons but a friendly Iran towards Saudi Arabia and Israel is more acceptable to west than the present regime.

If change of leadership in Iran takes place which I am sure it will. Iran will be the next place of mass agitation to topple the thirty year old failed experiment there.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

You gave the answer a change in leadership or possibly a reversal of sanctions by US and EU??

 

[SADAKHUSH]

It's not going to happen. Be sure on that. Hatred between Iran Vs U.S. (Arab, Israel) is too deep.

U.S.is planning to attack Iran. (They didn't attacked till date because it's already general Muslims perception that U.S. is attacking only Muslim countries). But It's matter of time, Iran will face the consequence.

Perception is far from reality. Only if general population can listen to the behind the door talks between Saudi Arabia and USA officials the real attacker on muslims will be exposed. USA is only providing the assets to SA Kingdom and other GCC countries in exchange of dollars. There is no such thing as being sure about a situation which might change depending upon the internal situation of Iran.

 

[Singh]

late to the party but iirc Shamshi airbase was leased out to UAE, so even if US leaves it will still be with UAE.

 

[Singh]

A PICTURE may be worth a thousand words but the story it tells isn`t always what is hoped for. With the American presence at the Shamsi airbase in Balochistan coming to an end, security authorities have allowed cameras to record the American evacuation and the return of Pakistani soldiers to the base. The idea of doing so was clearly to suggest that Pakistan had stood up to the American superpower and prevailed in a stand-off over control of the base. But it is an odd way to try and project the strength of the Pakistani state. In fact, the images of Pakistani soldiers taking guard around Shamsi as an American plane prepares to depart ought to raise an awkward question: how did Pakistan manage to lose control of the airbase in the first place? What has been projected as a moment of triumph is really masking years of embarrassing half-truths and misinformation.

Shamsi is an airbase deep inside Pakistani territory. It was built in the early 1990s by the UAE ruler to facilitate the hunting of the endangered and protected houbara bustard. After 9/11 and the arrival of American forces in neighbouring Afghanistan, the base somehow came under the control of American personnel via an opaque trilateral deal. Earlier this year Pakistani officials claimed that because Shamsi had been leased to/belonged to the UAE, Pakistan couldn`t evict the Americans from the base. Now, having finally managed to get the Americans to leave, Pakistan`s security authorities are trying to paint it as a victory. The Americans were portrayed as `reluctant` to leave the Shamsi airbase. Could their reluctance really have been rooted in some kind of legally binding understanding that neither the US nor the Pakistani state wanted to make public? The root of the problem is that once a matter is deemed to be related to `national security` a wall of secrecy is erected around it and no one other than a select and privileged few has a right to ask questions or get answers about the matter.

Given the series of incidents that have badly dented ties with the US, both the government and the military authorities would be better off putting in place measures to repair the relationship with America, without, of course, ceding what they deem to be in Pakistan`s interest. Both the external and internal situations are such that restoring balance to the relationship is a huge challenge. Exercises in damage control as seen in the Shamsi airbase example are not going to help overcome it.

Shamsi airbase | Newspaper | DAWN.COM

 

[Bhadra]

This is just a "Dikhawa" or a stunt by the Pak Army to asuage the feeling of hurt post Osaman incident. This is an effort by Pak Army and politicians to gain political credibility. Perhaps American drones will start functioning from some other airrbase or from Jalalabad and other airbases inside Afghanistan.
Well Zardari is being projected as a US villion.

I suppose drones can function equally well from Nalia, Jaisalamer and Avantipur / Partapur as also from Afghanistan. Not to allow that to happen Kaiyani will forward and backwards and offer USA some other bases discreetely.