Admiral Mullen endorses realistic Pakistani threat perception

In a recent hearing of the Senate Committee on Armed Services Adm. Mullen backed Pakistani threat perception and judge it as a realistic approach. He said that “The Pakistani military … consider their principal threat — their existential threat to be Indian — not these extremists. But they are increasingly concerned about the extremists as well and that’s why are addressing them.”

The US strategy for Pakistan, he said, would have to accommodate these perceptions. “It’s going to be at their pace, even though many of us would like to see it happen more quickly,” he added.

The US military chief warned that Washington should not only provide the resources needed to defeat the insurgents but also assure Pakistan and Afghanistan that it was committed to them.

“I’m sure it happens to you as well -- when you’re in Afghanistan or in Pakistan the question that is on their lips is, “Are you staying or are you going”?” said Admiral Mullen while addressing Senator LiebermanSenator Lieberman.

In another press briefing Adm. Mullen (03-09-09) has said that “with respect to the safe haven, the current safe haven in Pakistan, I think the way we get at that is through a growing and sustained and trusted partnership with Pakistan. And one of the ways I measure progress is if I look at Pakistan over the last 12 months and the success of their Frontier Corps, the success of their military in terms of its operations in Swat and the movement in that direction to address the extremists in their own country”