The Belgravia Dispatch: Quotable

January 10, 2008

Quotable

Musharraf, to the Straits Times: "I challenge anybody coming into our mountains. They would regret that day".

Excerpts:

MR PERVEZ Musharraf, Pakistan's embattled president, warned that any unilateral intervention in his country by coalition forces fighting in Afghanistan would be treated as an invasion.
Unless agreed to by Pakistan, any entry by the United States or coalition forces into Pakistan's tribal areas would be resisted as a breach of Pakistan's sovereignty, Mr Musharraf told The Straits Times in his first interview with a newspaper since the assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto on Dec 27.

Four American politicians, all Democrats contending for the party's nomination for the race to the White House, have called for US forces now in neighbouring Afghanistan to join the Pakistan Army's counter-insurgency campaign and to hunt down Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan's tribal areas.

President Musharraf slammed the 'perception in the United States (that) what our army cannot do, they can do'.

Added the president: 'I challenge anybody coming into our mountains. They would regret that day.'

Mr Musharraf also took issue with US Senator Hillary Clinton's proposal, made on the eve of her New Hampshire primary victory, to place Pakistan's nuclear weapons under supervision by the US and the UK. Her statement, the president said, was 'an intrusion into our privacy, into our sensitivity... She doesn't seem to understand how well-guarded these assets are'.

And I can't help wondering what Pervez would make of op-eds like this one, so energetically penned by notables among our estimable Washington wunderkind class...

Posted by Gregory at January 10, 2008 11:30 PM

Comments

He might observe that no one named Kagan or O'Hanlon is running for President just now. I know the thought occurred to me.

Posted by: Zathras at January 10, 2008 11:42 PM | Permalink to this comment

Funny Zathras, because if it were me....I would tend to focus on the fact that those running for Pres, and, more narrowly, those that often WIN the presidency, seem to lean on "wunderkind" like these two.

Posted by: jonst at January 11, 2008 07:39 AM | Permalink to this comment

O'Hanlon may not be running for President, but he's among other prominent neo-con lites on HRC's FP team.

O'Hanlon was shown to be an untrustworthy slimeball in his last editorial in the Times.

First he goes to Iraq for a few days, during which he subjects himself exclusively to the Petraeus marketing department. He speaks with virtually no one not selected by US forces.

Then he comes back and writes the ed singing the praises of the surge.

The right-wing press and blogosphere have a field day, saying that even O'Hanlon, who originally opposed the war, and who is a fellow at the LIBERAL Brookings institute now agrees the surge is a success. This, of course, proves that anyone who still opposes the war, or the surge, is an agent of OBL.

O'Hanlon allows himself to be (falsely) described as opposed to the Iraq war. He issues no clarification, even though his early support was total.

O'Hanlon dwells almost exclusively on the military aspect of the surge, downplaying the total failure of the Iraq government to achieve the political goals that President Bush swore the Maliki govt would be held accountable for.

O'Hanlon appears to be just another Villager who is trying to salvage his reputation in the face of being wrong about the war (really about the appropriate role of the US in the world), and positioning h/s for a position in a Clinton WH.

Glenn Greenwald's coverage of O'Hanlon NYT editorial at the time was, as usual, superb, fact-based, and scathing.

Posted by: Adams at January 11, 2008 06:06 PM | Permalink to this comment

"Regret that day" hmm? There's rumored to be a tall Saudi who seems to be doing okay in those mountains, not to mention a whole bunch of troublemakers from Pakistan as well. I guess there wasn't really anything else he could conceivably say...

Posted by: TG at January 11, 2008 08:03 PM | Permalink to this comment

Musharraf is responsible for Whatever happened in Pakistan in the last six to seven years. But he used blame others for some happenings in the border, which is completely unacceptable.
Roadside Assistance

Posted by: John at January 19, 2008 06:31 AM | Permalink to this comment

	« More Predictions \| Main \| Straits of Hormuz » January 10, 2008 Quotable Musharraf, to the Straits Times: "I challenge anybody coming into our mountains. They would regret that day". Excerpts: MR PERVEZ Musharraf, Pakistan's embattled president, warned that any unilateral intervention in his country by coalition forces fighting in Afghanistan would be treated as an invasion. Unless agreed to by Pakistan, any entry by the United States or coalition forces into Pakistan's tribal areas would be resisted as a breach of Pakistan's sovereignty, Mr Musharraf told The Straits Times in his first interview with a newspaper since the assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto on Dec 27. Four American politicians, all Democrats contending for the party's nomination for the race to the White House, have called for US forces now in neighbouring Afghanistan to join the Pakistan Army's counter-insurgency campaign and to hunt down Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan's tribal areas. President Musharraf slammed the 'perception in the United States (that) what our army cannot do, they can do'. Added the president: 'I challenge anybody coming into our mountains. They would regret that day.' Mr Musharraf also took issue with US Senator Hillary Clinton's proposal, made on the eve of her New Hampshire primary victory, to place Pakistan's nuclear weapons under supervision by the US and the UK. Her statement, the president said, was 'an intrusion into our privacy, into our sensitivity... She doesn't seem to understand how well-guarded these assets are'. And I can't help wondering what Pervez would make of op-eds like this one, so energetically penned by notables among our estimable Washington wunderkind class... Posted by Gregory at January 10, 2008 11:30 PM Comments He might observe that no one named Kagan or O'Hanlon is running for President just now. I know the thought occurred to me. Posted by: Zathras at January 10, 2008 11:42 PM \| Permalink to this comment Funny Zathras, because if it were me....I would tend to focus on the fact that those running for Pres, and, more narrowly, those that often WIN the presidency, seem to lean on "wunderkind" like these two. Posted by: jonst at January 11, 2008 07:39 AM \| Permalink to this comment O'Hanlon may not be running for President, but he's among other prominent neo-con lites on HRC's FP team. O'Hanlon was shown to be an untrustworthy slimeball in his last editorial in the Times. First he goes to Iraq for a few days, during which he subjects himself exclusively to the Petraeus marketing department. He speaks with virtually no one not selected by US forces. Then he comes back and writes the ed singing the praises of the surge. The right-wing press and blogosphere have a field day, saying that even O'Hanlon, who originally opposed the war, and who is a fellow at the LIBERAL Brookings institute now agrees the surge is a success. This, of course, proves that anyone who still opposes the war, or the surge, is an agent of OBL. O'Hanlon allows himself to be (falsely) described as opposed to the Iraq war. He issues no clarification, even though his early support was total. O'Hanlon dwells almost exclusively on the military aspect of the surge, downplaying the total failure of the Iraq government to achieve the political goals that President Bush swore the Maliki govt would be held accountable for. O'Hanlon appears to be just another Villager who is trying to salvage his reputation in the face of being wrong about the war (really about the appropriate role of the US in the world), and positioning h/s for a position in a Clinton WH. Glenn Greenwald's coverage of O'Hanlon NYT editorial at the time was, as usual, superb, fact-based, and scathing. Posted by: Adams at January 11, 2008 06:06 PM \| Permalink to this comment "Regret that day" hmm? There's rumored to be a tall Saudi who seems to be doing okay in those mountains, not to mention a whole bunch of troublemakers from Pakistan as well. I guess there wasn't really anything else he could conceivably say... Posted by: TG at January 11, 2008 08:03 PM \| Permalink to this comment Musharraf is responsible for Whatever happened in Pakistan in the last six to seven years. But he used blame others for some happenings in the border, which is completely unacceptable. Roadside Assistance Posted by: John at January 19, 2008 06:31 AM \| Permalink to this comment		About Belgravia Dispatch Gregory Djerejian, an international lawyer and business executive, comments intermittently on global politics, finance & diplomacy at this site. 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