CIA chief on first trip to Pakistan post-bin Laden (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – CIA Director Leon Panetta arrived in Pakistan on Friday on an unannounced visit, a U.S. official said, in his first trip to Islamabad since last month's secret raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Panetta, nominated to take over as defense secretary next month, planned to "reiterate the message of the U.S. intention to continue to cooperate with Pakistan," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The outgoing CIA chief was blunt with Congress in testimony on Thursday about the difficulties between two uneasy allies, whose relationship was further strained by the May 2 raid that killed the al Qaeda leader at his compound in Abbottabad, 30 miles northwest of Islamabad.

The United States kept Islamabad in the dark about the raid by Navy SEALs until after it was over, humiliating Pakistan's armed forces and putting U.S. military and intelligence ties under serious strain.

"There are some areas where, frankly, we have good discussions. ... But there are a number of areas where, frankly, we don't have that level of trust or communication capability," Panetta told lawmakers.

In another sign of the deep tensions, Pakistan's army said on Thursday it had drastically cut down on the number of U.S. troops allowed in the country and set clear limits on intelligence sharing with the United States.

Pakistan army chief General Ashfaq Kayani also called for the billions of dollars in U.S. military aid to be diverted into helping the economy.

DOUBLE GAME?

The United States believes the nearly decade-old war effort in neighboring Afghanistan cannot succeed unless Pakistan tackles insurgent safe havens near the border. On Friday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in Islamabad seeking Pakistan's help to end the Taliban insurgency.

Pakistan, which backed the Taliban government that ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until its ouster in 2001 by U.S.-backed forces, will be crucial to any attempts to stabilize its western neighbor.

But Pakistan has often been accused of playing a "double game," promising the United States it will go after militants, while supporting some of them, an allegation it denies.

U.S. commanders say the U.S. military effort in Afghanistan is being undermined partly by Pakistan-based militants like the Haqqani network.

The Haqqanis use safe havens in Pakistan's North Waziristan region to stage cross-border attacks against American troops in Afghanistan, and U.S. officials have accused Pakistani intelligence of ties to the group.

Panetta said he saw a "simple test" over Pakistan's commitment to tackling the Haqqanis, "which is whether or not the Haqqanis are continuing to go into Afghanistan and attacking our forces," he said.

"It seems to me that if they have an influence over the Haqqanis, that they could urge them to cease fire and to stop those kinds of attacks," he told lawmakers on Thursday.

(Editing by Peter Cooney)

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Obama ponders Afghanistan troop withdrawal, post-bin Laden

We've known for more than a year that President Obama is planning to begin a troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in July, but we don't know what the pace will be.

Now we wonder if that pace will quicken after the death of Osama bin Laden.

Certainly many Democrats -- and some Republicans -- are urging a stepped-up withdrawal.

"I think there's going to be a lot of strong feeling on the part of most Democrats and many, I think many independents, and even some Republicans that the decision of the president to reduce the number of troops in Afghanistan should be a robust reduction," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., said, "our reaction to the death of bin Laden should be that we declare victory. ... I think this changes the whole dynamics of the war on terrorism. Let's go after them. Let's not occupy a country for 10 years for nothing but a waste of lives."

Observers will be looking for clues from Obama on Friday, when he visits returning Afghanistan soldiers at Fort Campbell, Ky.

"Fort Campbell is home to several units, including the 101st Airborne Division which has several Brigade Combat Teams that have recently returned from Afghanistan, even as a significant part of the division remains deployed,"' said the White House announcement.

As Obama meets with advisers about the Afghanistan pullout, bin Laden's death isn't the only new element.

Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, has been nominated by Obama to be CIA director.

The current CIA director, Leon Panetta, is on tap to replace retiring Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

In the meantime, some lawmakers are arguing against a too-hasty retreat from Afghanistan, lest it again become a harbor for the kinds of terrorists once rallied by bin Laden.

"We would repeat a mistake that we made once before when we pulled out of Afghanistan after the Soviets did," said Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn. "That invited ultimately the Taliban and al-Qaeda into Afghanistan and from Afghanistan they attacked us on 9/11."

See photos of: Barack Obama, Afghanistan, Robert Gates, David Petraeus

USATODAY.com

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.

Obama ponders Afghanistan troop withdrawal, post-bin Laden

We've known for more than a year that President Obama is planning to begin a troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in July, but we don't know what the pace will be.

Now we wonder if that pace will quicken after the death of Osama bin Laden.

Certainly many Democrats -- and some Republicans -- are urging a stepped-up withdrawal.

"I think there's going to be a lot of strong feeling on the part of most Democrats and many, I think many independents, and even some Republicans that the decision of the president to reduce the number of troops in Afghanistan should be a robust reduction," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., said, "our reaction to the death of bin Laden should be that we declare victory. ... I think this changes the whole dynamics of the war on terrorism. Let's go after them. Let's not occupy a country for 10 years for nothing but a waste of lives."

Observers will be looking for clues from Obama on Friday, when he visits returning Afghanistan soldiers at Fort Campbell, Ky.

"Fort Campbell is home to several units, including the 101st Airborne Division which has several Brigade Combat Teams that have recently returned from Afghanistan, even as a significant part of the division remains deployed,"' said the White House announcement.

As Obama meets with advisers about the Afghanistan pullout, bin Laden's death isn't the only new element.

Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, has been nominated by Obama to be CIA director.

The current CIA director, Leon Panetta, is on tap to replace retiring Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

In the meantime, some lawmakers are arguing against a too-hasty retreat from Afghanistan, lest it again become a harbor for the kinds of terrorists once rallied by bin Laden.

"We would repeat a mistake that we made once before when we pulled out of Afghanistan after the Soviets did," said Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn. "That invited ultimately the Taliban and al-Qaeda into Afghanistan and from Afghanistan they attacked us on 9/11."

See photos of: Barack Obama, Afghanistan, Robert Gates, David Petraeus

USATODAY.com

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.