Haqqani Network: An American Dilemma

The Haqqani network has been at the forefront of terrorist attacks on American and other targets in Afghanistan. Few in the United States question the assessment that the principal threat to the stability of the Afghan government now comes from the Haqqani network.

Enjoying sanctuaries in Pakistani territory,the Haqqani network has often directed its fire at India. The bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul in July 2008 is believed to be the handiwork of the Haqqani network.

The U.S. State Department is said to be reviewing the case of the Haqqani network,but is concerned about the political and diplomatic consequences of designating it as a terrorist organization.

Washington has been reaching out to the Quetta shura of the Taliban to find a negotiated settlement to the war in Afghanistan. With the U.S. forces set to end their combat role by 2014,there is some urgency to the political engagement with the Taliban.

The problem for Washington is that the Haqqani network is part of the Quetta shura and naming it as a terrorist organization might complicate the proposed talks with the Taliban.

Even a bigger problem for Washington is that the Haqqani network has long enjoyed the patronage of the Pakistan army. Last year,the outgoing chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff,Admiral Mike Mullen,told the U.S. Congress that the Haqqani network is a ‘veritable arm’ of the ISI and the Pakistan army.

If it calls the Haqqani network a terrorist organization,Washington will be just one step away from calling Pakistan a ‘state sponsor’ of international terrorism. Washington fears moving down that road might irreparably damage U.S. relations with Pakistan.

In the last few months,Washington has sought to repair relations with Pakistan and is pressing Rawalpindi to act against the Haqqani network. Until now,Rawalpindi has fobbed off American pressures by saying that any action against the Haqqani network will inflame the militant sentiment and worsen Pakistan’s internal security situation.

The Pakistan army also tempts the Obama Administration by suggesting it can bring around the Haqqani network to accept a power sharing agreement with Kabul. Rawalpindi argues that any violent confrontation with the Haqqani network will end the possibility of a political deal. The Haqqani Act of the U.S. Congress,and last week’s decision in the U.S. Senate to delay the confirmation of a new American ambassador to Kabul,now are adding to the pressure on the State Department to make up its mind.

The next few weeks are likely to see intense parleys between Washington and Rawalpindi to find a way to delay if not avoid an inevitable confrontation between the two over the Haqqani network.

(The writer is a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation,Delhi).