The Perils in Pakistan

Caroline Wadhams

What happened?

There was a major terrorist attack against a Marriott hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan over the weekend in which militants drove a huge truck full of, people are estimating, 1,300 pounds of explosives into a security barricade of the Marriott hotel. And at least 53 people were killed from that explosion; hundreds were injured, including two Americans were killed. And people are alleging that it was either Al Qaeda elements or a Pakistani Taliban group called Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or it could be a mixture of the two people. We're not certain. But the devastation was astounding, and this really ratchets the insecurity in Pakistan and around the world.

Why does it matter? And what can we do?

Pakistan's security is directly tied to U.S. security. There are growing militant groups in Pakistan that are threatening both Pakistan and Afghanistan, but the United States and the world. There are safe havens within Pakistan where terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and associated militant groups are planning attacks according to our intelligence agencies.

The Center for American Progress and Foreign Policy magazine conducted their fourth terrorism index, which was released in September. This is a survey of more than 100 terrorism and national security experts from across the ideological spectrum for their views on general U.S. national security issues and terrorism issues. And these experts pointed to the urgency and the importance of Pakistan to U.S. national security interests.

Majorities of the experts believed that Pakistan would be the next terrorist safe haven for Al Qaeda and affiliated terrorist groups. They also believed that if one country would transfer nuclear weapons to terrorists, it would be Pakistan more than any other country. And they had a number of recommendations about how to turn the situation around in Pakistan, but there was a sense that the United States needed to change its failed policy toward Pakistan and begin doing things like increasing assistance toward governance reform, development assistance, political reform within the border areas of Pakistan where the terrorists, these militant groups, are operating. But again, Pakistan and the United States are inextricably liked in terms of their security. It's clear that the United States and Pakistan need to figure out how to move forward in addressing this major security threat both to Pakistan and to U.S. security interests.