Two missiles, fired from a suspected U.S. drone, struck early Tuesday morning in Pakistan's North Waziristan region, killing three militants. This missile strike comes after a suicide bomber killed 10 people in Peshawar and two bombs killed 49 people and injured over 100 in a market in Lahore, Pakistan's second biggest city. All of this happened just the day before. These bombings are part of a renewed Taliban counteroffensive that began in October after the death of Baitullah Mehsud, leader of the Pakistan branch of the Taliban. Since October, more than 400 people have been killed in various attacks.
Obama is planning to send additional troops to Afghanistan, but there is also sizeable dangers across the border in Pakistan. There is an incredible danger if Pakistan becomes extremely unstable, considering that the nation possesses a nuclear arsenal. Supporters of the troop increase in Afghanistan might say that we cannot allow the Taliban to regain a foothold in Afghanistan, but arguably, allowing them to gain a foothold in Pakistan could be even more dangerous. Pakistan protests the missiles, calling them "violations of its sovereignty", so it appears as if Pakistan has limits as to how much American intervention it can withstand. But, if it comes to it, would the United States be forced to "invade" Pakistan in order to stabilize the current government and provide security?
Monday, December 7, 2009
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I do not believe that US would invade Pakistan, as it would probably cause a mess. I believe the US would want to avoid conflict at all costs since the war is costing us so much money. I wish we could pull all troops out of the middle east, but I believe it is impossible at the moment with the current state of government there.
I don't think it all depends on how the Pakistanis react. If Obama sends a few troops and the Pakistanis threaten to use the missiles, I think he would order them to back out because he would be putting civilians (or anyone) at risk. However, I don't think the Taliban should have the chance to invade Pakistan, especially if they have a nuclear arsenal. Even though Pakistan says US strikes are a violation against their sovereignty, taking the chance of the Taliban invading Pakistan is a greater danger.
Chris, you say that America wants to avoid conflict at all costs since it is costing us so much money, but we are still sending additional troops to Afghanistan. And say we don't send troops to Pakistan because we're afraid of creating a humongous mess. What happens if the Taliban and Al-Qaeda manage to do something like take out some more important figures? Remember what happened to Benazir Bhutto? What will the U.S. do if the same thing occurs to some other important Pakistani political figures?
Britney, if the U.S. were to send troops to Pakistan against the will of the Pakistani government, how effective would American efforts be there? How stable of a government could we leave behind after an eventual withdrawal if the government hates our presence?
Even though this may cost lives and million of dollars, it could potentially do a lot of good for the middle east and for our own country. If we were still in a recession and the gas prices soared, needless to say, that would be bad for the world wide economy.
On the matter of national and international safety, if we completely pulled out of the middle east it could cause Pakistan and Afghanistan to become unstable and put ourselves in a vulnerable position. Pulling out can cause terrorist groups such as al- Qaeda to take action (after all, don't they WANT Americans out of there?), thus putting us in a position for reaction... that is definitely not a good position to be in.
I think after this weeks attack in Islamabad, the Pakistan governments want all the help they can get. Terrorist attacks are at a pinnacle in Pakistan but like Christopher said, I don't think Obama would want to invade Pakistan because America already is biting off more than it can chew. But I think Obama will try to help Pakistan. By sending more troops to Afghanistan, Obama is trying to control the growth of terrorist attacks and if that happens, then the Pakistan issue will resolve on its own. Once the terrorist groups in Afghanistan are handled, all will be well in America and Pakistan and the rest of the world (well, sort of).
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