Tuesday, June 22

RAND paper "Counterinsurgency in Pakistan," stuck in carrot-and-stick groove

AP's head's up about the RAND paper prior to its publication gave me hope that a major American think tank was recommending Washington abandon the carrot-and-stick approach to Islamabad. When I read the paper I saw my hope was in vain.

The paper's authors, Seth G. Jones and C. Christine Fair, did a decent job of pointing out some of the militant groups in Pakistan that receive state support. But far from recommending that Washington stop treating Pakistan's military and civilian leaders like recalcitrant donkeys they advised finding tastier carrots and bigger sticks.

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