US mounts war strategy review

[Naveed Yaseen]

* Reassessment of stragegy for Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran and Iraq to begin next month

WASHINGTON: United States General David Petraeus, who will head Central Command from October 31, has launched a major reassessment of the regional strategy, warning that the lack of development and the spiralling violence in Afghanistan will probably make it “the longest campaign of the long war”, The Washington Post reported on Thursday.

The review will formally begin next month, but experts and military officials involved said Petraeus is already focused on at least two major themes: government-led reconciliation of Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and the leveraging of diplomatic and economic initiatives with nearby countries that are influential in the war.

“The effort in Afghanistan is going to be the longest campaign of the long war,” Petraeus told the newspaper on Wednesday.

Reconciliation of moderate Taliban insurgents who are willing to ally with the Afghan government is emerging as one main thrust of Petraeus’ approach, according to officials and experts who have discussed it with him recently. Petraeus agreed but stressed that any outreach needs to be done in conjunction with the Afghan government.

Afghanistan and Pakistan experts consulted so far include Shuja Nawaz, author of “Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army, and the Wars Within,” whom Petraeus consulted during a private lunch in Washington last week, and Ahmed Rashid, author of “Descent into Chaos”.

The effort would embrace all of Afghanistan’s neighbours and possibly extend to India, which has had a long-standing rivalry with Pakistan, the report said. “There may be opportunities with respect to India,” Petraeus said, according to the newspaper. app

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...2008_pg1_3