Baithak - A place where Pakistani Bloggers get United.
By RICHARD N. HAASSIt now is highly likely that the United States will face several quarters of negative growth to be followed by several years of low growth. Less and less are we hearing of V- or U-shaped economic recoveries. The immediate future looks like an L: sharp contraction followed by not much in the […]
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By Greg Bruno, Council on Foreign RelationsNov. 7, 2008 IntroductionIn the hunt for a new strategy in Afghanistan, U.S. military commanders are studying the feasibility of recruiting Afghan tribesmen (LAT) to target Taliban and al-Qaeda elements. Taking a page from the so-called “Sunni Awakening” in Iraq, which turned Sunni tribesmen against militants first in Anbar Province […]
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November 12, 2008 By Yousuf NazarTHE election of Barack Obama is an historic turning point for the US. The son of a black Muslim immigrant from Kenya, an underprivileged child born of a mixed marriage, raised in a broken home and a Washington outsider Obama represents an emerging post-race, post-gender, younger and more diverse America.But that […]
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By David IgnatiusTuesday, November 4, 2008; A17Pakistan is publicly complaining about U.S. airstrikes. But the country’s new chief of intelligence, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, visited Washington last week for talks with America’s top military and spy chiefs, and everyone seemed to come away smiling.
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November 10, 2008 By Yousuf NazarGiven that the current account deficit is now likely to continue to shrink for the next several months, the month-on-month core inflation rate has fallen every month since May 2008, the fuel subsidies (the principal cause of deterioration in the fiscal position) have been withdrawn, and the manufacturing production is falling, […]
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November 4, 2008 It was routinely vaunted as the “Switzerland of Asia”. A plush region of mountains, dense forests and shimmering azure rivers. For years it was favoured as a choice holiday destination for Pakistan’s middle classes.Now, a year after the Pakistani military launched a campaign here to halt a Taliban insurgency, officials fear that four-fifths […]
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November 1, 2008 By Yousuf NazarGiven the current ‘political realities’, Pakistan seems to have little option but to go to the IMF. But the truth is Pakistan can raise $5 billion in the next 30 days if it wants to; even if Saudi Arabia does not extend oil credit facility.The United States wants Pakistan to work with […]
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Oct. 29, 2008 FOCUS WITH FAEZAARY ONEWORLD TV SHOWHost: Faeza Dawood, Guest: Yousuf Nazar
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October 29, 2008 By Yousuf NazarPakistan’s current economic meltdown is a crisis of competence if judged in light of the recent past. In the context of history, it represents a colossal failure of the establishment’s long-term foreign and economic policies. Pakistan desperately needs four to five billion dollars to avoid default on its external obligations. […]
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October 25, 2008 By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN –BEIJING (AP) — Seeking a common approach to the global financial turmoil, Asian and European leaders called for new rules guiding the global economy and a leading role for the International Monetary Fund in aiding crisis-stricken countries.The 43 nations participating in the Asia-Europe Meeting summit reconvened for a second day […]
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The New York TimesOctober 23, 2008By JIM YARDLEY and KEITH BRADSHERBEIJING — For three decades, China has fueled its remarkable economic rise by becoming the world’s workshop and unleashing a flood of low-priced exports. But faced with a possible global recession and weakening demand for Chinese exports, the question now is whether the ruling Communist […]
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10/23/2008 11:55 PM | By Patrick Seale, Special to Gulf NewsIran’s opposition appears to be a major reason why, after eight months of arduous negotiations, the United States and Iraq have so far failed to reach agreement on a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), although such an agreement is urgently required. The UN Resolution, which […]
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Financial TimesBy David RothkopfPublished: October 21 2008 18:59 function floatContent(){var paraNum = “3″ paraNum = paraNum - 1;var tb = document.getElementById(\’floating-con\’);var nl = document.getElementById(\’floating-target\’);if(tb.getElementsByTagName(”div”).length> 0){if (nl.getElementsByTagName(”p”).length>= paraNum){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName(”p”)[paraNum]);}else {if (nl.getElementsByTagName(”p”).length == 3){nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName(”p”)[2]);}else {nl.insertBefore(tb,nl.getElementsByTagName(”p”)[0]);}}}}For weeks, the headlines have been dominated by banks faltering and countries propping them up. But we have entered a new phase […]
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Asia Times Online October 20, 2008By Syed Saleem Shahzad KARACHI - Cash-strapped Pakistan, after the failure of operations against militants in Bajaur Agency and the Swat Valley, has had to call off an offensive in the North Waziristan tribal area, and instead negotiate ceasefire deals.Nevertheless, relentless pressure from the United States will not allow Islamabad […]
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By Jon HemmingKABUL, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Western leaders are reawakening to the reality of Afghanistan — that it is famously unforgiving to foreign forces on its soil and claiming victory there depends on how you measure success.
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Sat Oct 18, 2008 ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The top U.S. diplomat for South Asia began a series of meetings with Pakistan’s leaders on Saturday, with the U.S. ally facing a looming balance of payments crisis as well as rising Islamist militancy.
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October 13, 2008Brian Wingfield and Deborah OrrFollowing a packed weekend of meetings here, many of the world’s top economic officials are returning to their home countries Monday to deal with the next stage in the ongoing financial crisis.
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The Times of IndiaOctober 12, 2008No passport has yet been devised that can take one easily across the borderline of fear. Pakistan used to fear annihilation by India; now it fears hegemony. India used to fear invasion across the Line of Control in Kashmir; now it fears the export of terror.One nation’s freedom-fighter can, of […]
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From DAWN of October 15, 2008By Yousuf NazarPresident Zardari’s visits China at a time when the global economic power balance is making a historic shift. “End of US era - now China calls the tune”, declares a headline of Sydney Morning Herald, Australia’s oldest and most respected newspaper. “Can Chinese Cash Save the World’s Banks? […]
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Monday, October 13, 2008, Shawwal 13, 1429 A.H by Yousuf NazarThe current received wisdom in the United States is that the militants in northwest Pakistan have provided safe havens to Al Qaeda has along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and the greatest threat to America’s security comes from this region. No US official or journalist or think-tank has […]
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From DAWN of Oct. 11, 2008By Yousuf NazarTHE worst global financial crisis since the 1930s is more than just an economic phenomenon. It may turn out to be the most important event since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. A unipolar world emerged following the disintegration […]
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October 10, 2008By Praful Bidwai It’s not often that run-of-the-mill politicians rise above petty self-interest, and even more rarely that they propose grand ideas and expansive visions. But when they do venture to think out of the box and offer worthy proposals, these must be heartily welcomed — no matter what their motives and however […]
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From DAWNLONDON, Oct 3: Britain’s ambassador to Afghanistan is understood to have said that the campaign against the Taliban militants would fail and that the best hope was to instal an acceptable dictator in Kabul.According to a report published in The Times, Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, “a Foreign Office heavyweight with a reputation for blunt speaking”, […]
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WSJ OPINION, OCTOBER 7, 2008We’re Not Headed for a DepressionNo, this isn’t the crisis that kills global capitalism.By GARY S. BECKERIn order to promote a much smoother functioning of the financial system, it is paramount to distinguish between the immediate steps needed to cope with the present crisis and the long-run reforms needed to reduce […]
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From Vanity Fair by JOSEPH E. STIGLITZNovember 2008 Describing how ideology, special-interest pressure, populist politics, and sheer incompetence have left the U.S. economy on life support, the author puts forth a clear, commonsense plan to reverse the Bush-era follies and regain America’s economic sanity.
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From The Independent UK In Afghanistan the US policy has been catastrophically misconceivedTuesday, 7 October 2008The first serious talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban took place 10 days ago in Mecca under the auspices of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. During the discussions all sides agreed that the war in Afghanistan is going to […]
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By Michael HeathOct. 7 (Bloomberg) — The conflict in Afghanistan is impossible to win through force and talks with “relevant” groups are necessary to bring peace to the country, the United Nations envoy to Kabul said.“We all know that we cannot win it militarily,” Kai Eide told reporters yesterday in the Afghan capital. “It has […]
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From Rediff.comM K Bhadrakumar | October 07, 2008 | 12:47 ISTCNN broke the story in a London datelined report on Monday quoting authoritative sources that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia hosted high-level talks in Mecca between the Afghan government and the Taliban.The reported intra-Afghan talks under the mediation of Saudi Arabia in Mecca on September […]
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“Obama’s will be presidency of wars sold as “just wars” of necessity in the Greater Middle East. He is a proponent of pursuing the Taliban across the Pakistani-Afghani borders and engaging them in Pakistan with or without the consent of Pakistani authorities. Many analysts in the US see that as a destabilizing move of the Pakistani government […]
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Fighting between militants and the military has driven thousands of people into refugee camps in Pakistan’s tribal areas The New York Times, Published: October 2, 2008By JANE PERLEZ and PIR ZUBAIR SHAHPESHAWAR, Pakistan — War has come to Pakistan, not just as terrorist bombings, but as full-scale battles, leaving Pakistanis angry and dismayed as the dead, wounded […]
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From The Wall Street Journal, THE WEEKEND INTERVIEW Asif Ali ZardariOCTOBER 4, 2008By BRET STEPHENSAsif Ali Zardari used to sport a full moustache, jet black and rakish in the style of the avid polo player he once was. But sometime in the past year he trimmed it short and let its salt-and-pepper colors show. It […]
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From The Wall Street JournalTHE WEEKEND INTERVIEW Asif Ali ZardariOCTOBER 4, 2008By BRET STEPHENSAsif Ali Zardari used to sport a full moustache, jet black and rakish in the style of the avid polo player he once was. But sometime in the past year he trimmed it short and let its salt-and-pepper colors show. It befits […]
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THE WEEKEND INTERVIEW Asif Ali ZardariOCTOBER 4, 2008By BRET STEPHENSAsif Ali Zardari used to sport a full moustache, jet black and rakish in the style of the avid polo player he once was. But sometime in the past year he trimmed it short and let its salt-and-pepper colors show. It befits the sober role he […]
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September 30, 2008Pakistan’s New Spy ChiefPakistan’s Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Kiyani, the country’s senior military leader, has appointed a new Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence or I.S.I., the Army’s main spy agency, notorious in the United States because of its long collaboration with Islamist militants, including the Taliban.
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The following may be the most vital piece of information about 9/11, the War of Terror and its relationship to Pakistan, that you would have come across in the last seven years. Links provide details of original sources. This has been put together with the help of the material based on the official records of the 9/11 […]
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Thursday October 2, 12:30 pm ETBy Josh Funk, AP Business Writer Buffett says financial crisis is an ‘economic Pearl Harbor’ that needs immediate counterattackOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said the nation has been hit with an “economic Pearl Harbor,” and the government must respond quickly.Buffett talked about the nation’s ongoing financial woes […]
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THE FOLLOWING MAY BE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE PIECE OF INFORMATION ABOUT 9/11, THE WAR ON TERROR AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO PAKISTAN, THAT YOU WOULD HAVE COME ACROSS IN THE LAST SEVEN YEARS. PLEASE DO CLICK ON ALL THE LINKS.
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From The Financial Times By Alan BeattieSeptember 28 2008Debating with Al Gore in the presidential election eight years ago, George W. Bush defined a new, humbler attitude towards the rest of the world. “I’m not so sure the role of the United States is to go around the world and say, ‘this is the way it has […]
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By Tanvir Ahmad KhanThe public discussion of this monumental Indo-US accord in Pakistan was a fraction of the debate in India. Pakistan’s nuclear bureaucracy, be it in the Foreign Office or in the dedicated nuclear establishments, mostly opted for silence and discouraged open discussionThe bilateral meetings held by leaders of India and Pakistan with President […]
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From The Counterpunch September 27, 2008 By Anthony DiMaggio Note: Anthony DiMaggio teaches American Government and Politics of the Developing World at Illinois State University“We’re on the brink of war with Pakistan…the fact remains that American forces have and are violating Pakistani sovereignty…the Bush administration’s decision to step up attacks in Pakistan is fatally reckless, because the […]
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function getTitle() { return “Friends like these” […]
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September 27, 2008By JANE PERLEZISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A week after the bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel here, Pakistan is struggling to deal with a financial meltdown and a terrorism threat that has moved to the nation’s heart and badly shaken confidence in the new government among Pakistanis, diplomats and investors alike.
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Waziristan is America’s new front line in the war against the Taliban. The last British officer to have served there, now 81, tells it cannot be tamed by force aloneFrom The Sunday TimesSeptember 21, 2008 by Christina Lamb Few places on earth are as remote and hostile as Waziristan, part […]
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Y P Rajesh Sep 24, 2008 at 0113 hrsIslamabad, September 23 : Ghulam Murtaza remembers just two things about Saturday evening — the most deafening sound he has ever heard and the complete chaos that followed. The 40-year-old former Pakistan Army soldier works for Karakoram Security Services, which guards the Islamabad Marriott Hotel, and was […]
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Y P Rajesh Sep 26, 2008 at 0138 hrsIslamabad, September 25 : It may be early days in the investigations into the bombing of the Islamabad Marriott Hotel but uncanny similarities are beginning to emerge with the July 7 bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, which killed 54 people including an IFS officer and […]
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By Robert M. Hathaway September 26, 2008 The recent inauguration of Asif Ali Zardari as Pakistan’s president offered the possibility - but hardly the certainty - of a new beginning for Pakistan, and a new era in US-Pakistan relations.
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Robert Gates’ testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee is serious business. Key highights: Western Pakistan has the biggest Al Qaeda base and now poses the biggest terrorist threat to the United States.Pakistan’s leaders and military cannot publicly support U.S. cross-border operations.Spring of 2009 is the earliest the Pentagon would be able to send three more U.S. combat […]
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September 24, 2008 From From CNN’s Peter Hamby and Wes Little NEW YORK (CNN) – Sarah Palin and the foreign leaders she has met with in New York have said very little to reporters over the last two days, but the press happened to be in the room on Wednesday for one eyebrow-raising exchange, as the new […]
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The following statement from Moody’s. Pakistan has now the worst credit rating in Asia. This means it would become even more difficult to sell Pakistan paper (debt or equity) in the international markets. It may cause further outflow of portfolio investment and add pressure on an already weakening currency.
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From The News InternationalSept. 22, 2008By Amir MirLAHORE: The pattern of the Marriott Hotel suicide bombing in Islamabad suggests the possible involvement of the Harkatul Jehadul Islami (HUJI), led by Qari Saifullah Akhtar, and not the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), headed by Baitullah Mehsud, which was held responsible for most recent suicide bombings across Pakistan.
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