Petraeus’s Assessment -- A Commentary

Although he maintained that Pakistan’s decades-old ties with Afghan insurgents “continue in various forms”, Gen Petraeus also pointed out that such links actually help intelligence-gathering. “[Y]ou have to have contact with bad guys to get intelligence on bad guys,” is how he summed it up. Photo by Reuters.

From Dawn:

Pakistan's image on Capitol Hill received a much-needed boost on Thursday. Gen David Petraeus, head of the US Central Command, told a congressional hearing that he did not fully accept the findings of a recent study which alleges that Pakistani intelligence is providing operational support to the Afghan Taliban.

Although he maintained that Pakistan’s decades-old ties with Afghan insurgents “continue in various forms”, Gen Petraeus also pointed out that such links actually help intelligence-gathering. “[Y]ou have to have contact with bad guys to get intelligence on bad guys,” is how he summed it up.

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My Comment: I understand the General's logic that your ally must keep some contact with the enemy .... but unfortunately the ISI (Pakistan's intelligence agency) is doing more than just that. Providing training, money, weapons, and direction does not instill confidence that they are operating with our interests in mind.