Islamabad Hides Behind Taliban Talks

Pakistan and Taliban representatives have started peace talks. Pakistani media debate “whether a military operation or negotiations are the best solution to the Taliban insurgency,” reflecting deep divide between Pakistani secular liberals and religious conservatives, writes Shams uz Zaman for Asia Times. He suggests that Pakistan’s liberalism represents wealth and double standards rather than human rights and freedom of speech. Pakistan’s troubled economy cannot afford military operations to eliminate the Taliban. Pakistanis cannot be sure if the negotiators truly represent the Taliban or the Pakistani military, whether either side can control its members. Already, the Taliban negotiators impose conditions – demanding that Pakistan embrace sharia law, despite lack of support from most Pakistanis, and withdrawal of US forces from neighboring Afghanistan. Meanwhile, US media report the Karzai administration is holding secret talks with other Taliban representatives, though the Taliban deny this. Karzai has delayed signing an agreement that would keep limited foreign troops in Afghanistan after 2014 and insists it can wait until after April elections. The confusion around peace talks, the strident demands, high expectations for stalemate and more violence may be but a prelude to more war. – YaleGlobal