Автор: stephaniebergin

„The real significance is the change in the Pakistani policy,“ explains Mir. U.S. and Afghan leaders, „have been criticizing Pakistan for years for allowing the Taliban to move freely between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and now, by arresting Mullah Baradar, they have demonstrated in the strongest way a change in policy.“ „Until now the Pakistanis treated the Afghan Taliban as an asset. They have gone after members of the Pakistani Taliban, but they have never — in eight years — arrested any significant member of the Afghan Taliban. Until now.“ That apparent shift in policy, says Mr. Mir, is a direct result of „huge pressure“ applied by Washington — where officials likely recognized the Pakistani Army’s desperate need for funding as a means of leveraging action on the ground. „They had no choice but to finally start going after the Taliban,“ says Mir. If Baradar’s arrest does herald a broader crackdown on Taliban militants in the Afghan border region by Pakistani security officials, and a willingness to work more closely in covert operations with American intelligence operatives, that will dramatically affect the militant group’s ability to wage attacks. „The command and control of the Afghan Taliban is destroyed in Pakistan, which is going to make it very difficult for them to operate because they will not be able to go back and forth into Pakistan to receive orders,“ says Mir. „The most important thing is that Pakistan is no longer a safe haven for them, so they have to run and hide for their safety, which will make it much harder for them to keep up the fight.“

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The U.S. Embassy in Damascus has been without an ambassador since February 2005, when the Bush administration recalled Margaret Scobey in response to the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Syria’s foes in Lebanon accused Damascus of being behind the bombing, allegations Syria has repeatedly denied. The return of an American ambassador is a gesture welcomed by Syria as recognition Washington’s increasing acceptance that the nation could potentially help ease violence in Iraq, stabilize Lebanon and solve the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Burns (click here for a State Department bio), a former U.S. Ambassador to Jordan (pictured above) who speaks fluent Arabic, will discuss with Assad a range of regional issues, according to Crowley, including how Syria views „the situation with respect to Middle East peace.“ Syria insists that Israel must agree to withdrawal from the disputed Golan Heights before any peace negotiations between the two countries can be renewed. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has vehemently rejected the notion of a withdrawal from the territory seized by the Jewish state during a week-long war in 1967. Since taking the oath, President Obama has cautiously sought to improve ties with Syria, and U.S. lawmakers have made a flurry of visits to Damascus. Deputy Foreign Minister Fayssal al-Mekdad, a leading figure in Syrian foreign policy, also visited Washington. Damascus has accepted Washington’s nominee for the first U.S. Ambassador to Syria in five years. Syrian and U.S. officials have refused to confirm that Robert Stephen Ford, who currently serves as Deputy Ambassador to Iraq and is recognized as an expert on the Arab world, is the nominee. Ford’s nomination has been widely reported, and confirmed to CBS News by diplomatic officials speaking off the record. However, according to protocol, the White House would have to announce his appointment officially only after it is submitted to the U.S. Senate for approval. Burns, an architect of the 2003 deal between the U.S. and Libya that helped bring some degree of credibility back to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, was also set to have separate talks with Syrian Foreign Minister Waleed Mouallem. The U.S. envoy arrives in Damascus after visiting Beirut where held talks with Lebanese President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Saad Hariri. He will continue his regional trip in Turkey, and will then head to Azerbaijan for meetings on Feb. 19 with President Ilham Aliyev and other officials.

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