About Those Goings-On in Pakistan

[Nuclear Unicorn]

Had a conversation last night.

I was reminded that in addition to Pakistan being nuclear-armed it is also a whisker's breadth from political collapse.

I was then informed that Pakistan is a veritable client state of the Chinese.

China apparently likes to use Pakistan as a counter-weight against India as the Indians and Chinese have territorial disputes.

India also has historically long-running conflicts with Pakistan.

India, as it will be recalled is nuclear-armed.

Now I read in the news that NATO convoys in Pakistan are being attacked in retaliation for strikes against presumed militant bases.

India, I am told, would never tolerate Pakistan falling to the radicals.

China, I am told, would never tolerate Pakistan falling to India...assuming Pakistan didn't launch their weapons rather than see them overrun.

Supposedly the US has contingency plans to snatch Pakistani nukes if the country destabilizes.

Are these statements, for the most part, factual?



I genuinely believe the president ordered those strikes based on the intel provided to him by his staff...

...but I have a really sick feeling in my stomach that this could spiral out of control rather quickly.

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. Let me share something I posted on another thread.

From a 2008 news story:

To fuel its growing economy, India is turning to Iran. A proposed 2,600-kilometer gas pipeline would carry natural gas from fields in Iran to India to satisfy the country's increasing demand for energy. The proposed 7.5-billion dollar pipeline would run through Pakistan. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf cleared obstacles to the planned pipeline after the Iranian President's recent visit to New Delhi and Islamabad. Washington continues to oppose the pipeline because it believes the pipeline will bolster Iran.

http://payvand.com/news/08/jun/1158.html

[Vehl]

3. I dont really see that happening

India does not want to make the strategic blunder of having a significant % of its oil supply coming through Pakistan.


All this talk about the Iran-Pakistan-Indian pipeline is just that; talk. They talk about this just to make it seem as if some trade/potential is possible between Pakistan and India...especially during the times when they countries have "talks".


To expect India to have its oil need met by a pipeline through Pakistan is like expecting Israel to get its oil via a pipeline through Syria....or for South Korea to get oil via north Korea. Does not make any sense...and will not happen.Pakistan will hold the threat of some "militant" attacks on this oil pipeline every-time India and Pakistan have a disagreement (which is quite often). There is no surer way for India to shoot its own foot than going ahead with this proposal...and that's why this has remained in the "proposal' stage for nearly 2 decades...and will remain so forever (imho)


Iran is pretty close via sea to India...and there is no reason for them to go for this land route.

[Poll_Blind]

2. Yes, those are generally accurate statements. The only thing I really don't know about is the...

...whole "China would never tolerate Pakistan falling to India" thing or Pakistan being a Chinese client state. I don't recall ever hearing that or anything like that.

BTW, it's not Pakistan that set those twenty-seven (or so) tankers on fire. It was Pakistani "militants". (wink)

And there will be a lot more attacks by "militants" if the U.S. keeps killing Pakistani soldiers.

BTW if, by the most seriously disturbing chance, we get into an actual war with Pakistan expect the U.S. to do everything humanly possible to overtly or covertly drag India into it, which would almost inevitably mean some nuke going off in either of those countries.

The U.S. is so out of control right now, and it looks like we might be breaking with the ISI (Pakistani CIA, who seem to "reallY' run the country) that the whole of everything can just go tits up in a heartbeat.

Or, it could be a clever plan to help get Pervez Musharraf re-elected.

PB