The deputy sheriff rides alone
Howard - - Posted on May, 1 at 7:39 pm by Ken L
There’s a revealing story in today’s Sydney Morning Herald.
Our prime minister is always one to claim the high moral ground. Personal courage oozes from every pore as he spurns the populist route, takes the hard decisions, acknowledges that Australian forces might incur casualties etc. This presumably gives him the right to lecture other nations’ leaders about their failings, or to request that countries like Pakistan do more in the GWOT even though they happen to be somewhat more exposed to the risk of blowback than someone in the Canberra bunker.
Consequently it was somewhat disappointing to read that when the opportunity arose to briefly share the normal routine hazards that are the lot of the president of Pakistan, Howard apparently wimped it.
Fresh from Kabul, where he had praised the work towards democracy by the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, Mr Howard was keen to express solidarity with General Musharraf in the “war on terror”, and to visit an Australian Army medical hospital that was helping victims of a huge earthquake in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir.
Eager to reciprocate, General Musharraf offered to escort his guest personally to the quake zone on board his own helicopter. The perfect diplomatic photo opportunity beckoned, but the offer went begging when Mr Howard declined, citing security concerns. Instead, he flew to Kashmir on a US Army Black Hawk helicopter.
At least one Pakistani cabinet minister who spoke to the Herald at the time could barely suppress his anger at what was seen as an unforgivable personal snub. Here was a Western leader who had repeatedly pledged to stand shoulder to shoulder with General Musharraf, but wouldn’t step onto an aircraft with him.
No doubt he had promised Janette he wouldn’t engage in any silly heroics but still … for a man who places such importance on prestige and sending signals, it wasn’t a good look.
Posted in Howard |
May 1st, 2007 at 7:54 pm
L:ets not forget Howard campaigned in favour of conscription during the VietNam war knowing that he was safe from it himself due to being too old to be eligible and medically unfit for service due to his hearing defect.
Dont worry, John has a long history of being happy for other people to do the dangerous or uncomfortable stuff.
May 1st, 2007 at 8:48 pm
i have heard of howard’s security mob in australia is just a bunch of thugs , just push people out the way , no manners, and this is at a setup photo oppertunity.it appears howard is very,very security minded, i think he believes his own fear campaign
May 1st, 2007 at 9:33 pm
Right on Ken & Pre-Dawn Leftist…Howard is another Cheney…no wonder they enjoy each other’s company.
I hear Prince Harry’s heading to Iraq. What a hero! Man, if only more Toffs would grab their champers & caviar & head for Messopotamia. Mebbe he can help setup a new Kingdom there. It’s can’t go down worse than the confused & arse-dragging Govt. in charge now.
This might be one reason Howard wasn’t keen to be seen cosying up to the Pakistanis:
“The Missing Link”
In the days following Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad’s dismissal, a report published in the Times of India, which went virtually unnoticed by the Western media, revealed the links between Pakistan’s Chief spy Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad and the presumed “ring leader” of the WTC attacks Mohamed Atta. In many regards, the Times of India report constitutes “the missing link” to an understanding of who was behind the terrorist attacks of September 11:
While the Pakistani Inter Services Public Relations claimed that former ISI director-general Lt-Gen Mahmoud Ahmad sought retirement after being superseded on Monday [8 October], the day the US started bombing Afghanistan], the truth is more shocking. Top sources confirmed here on Tuesday [October 9], that the general lost his job because of the “evidence” India produced to show his links to one of the suicide bombers that wrecked the World Trade Centre. The US authorities sought his removal after confirming the fact that $100,000 were wired to WTC hijacker Mohammed Atta from Pakistan by Ahmad Umar Sheikh at the instance of Gen. Mahmoud. Senior government sources have confirmed that India contributed significantly to establishing the link between the money transfer and the role played by the dismissed ISI chief. While they did not provide details, they said that Indian inputs, including Sheikh’s mobile phone number, helped the FBI in tracing and establishing the link.
A direct link between the ISI and the WTC attack could have enormous repercussions. The US cannot but suspect whether or not there were other senior Pakistani Army commanders who were in the know of things. Evidence of a larger conspiracy could shake US confidence in Pakistan’s ability to participate in the anti-terrorism coalition. 19
According to FBI files, Mohamed Atta was “the lead hijacker of the first jet airliner to slam into the World Trade Center and, apparently, the lead conspirator” 20
The Times of India article was based on an official intelligence report of the Delhi government that had been transmitted through official channels to Washington. Agence France Press (AFP) confirms in this regard that:
A highly-placed government source told AFP that the “damning link” between the General and the transfer of funds to Atta was part of evidence which India has officially sent to the US. `The evidence we have supplied to the US is of a much wider range and depth than just one piece of paper linking a rogue general to some misplaced act of terrorism,’ the source said. 21
Pakistan’s Military-Intelligence Agency behind September 11?
The revelation of the Times of India article has several implications. The report not only points to the links between ISI Chief General Ahmad and terrorist ringleader Mohamed Atta, it also indicates that other ISI officials might have had contacts with the terrorists. Moreover, it suggests that the September 11 attacks were not an act of “individual terrorism” organised by a separate Al Qaeda cell, but rather they were part of coordinated military-intelligence operation, emanating from Pakistan’s ISI.
The Times of India report also sheds light on the nature of General Ahmad’s “business activities” in the US during the week prior to September 11, raising the distinct possibility of ISI contacts with Mohamed Atta in the US in the week “prior” to the attacks on the WTC, precisely at the time when General Mahmoud and his delegation were on a so-called “regular visit of consultations” with US officials. Remember, Lt. General Mahmoud Ahmad arrived in the US on the 4th of September.
and…
The existence of an “ISI-Osama-Taliban axis” is a matter of public record. The links between the ISI and agencies of the US government including the CIA are also a matter of public record.
Pakistan’s ISI has been used by successive US adminstrations as “a go-between.” Pakistan’s military-intelligence apparatus, constitutes the core institutional support to both Osama’s Al Qaeda and the Taliban. Without this institutional support, there would be no Taliban government in Kabul. In turn, without the unbending support of the US government. there would be no powerful military-intelligence apparatus in Pakistan.
(http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/08_01_98_osama_bin_laden.html)
Just a reminder of the complexity of overseas relations & the so called ‘War on Terrorism’ on a day when the top Al Qaeda Leader in Iraq was KABOOMED! conveniently the day before the 4th anniversary of Bushies MISSION ACCOMPLISHED speech…& the upcoming VETO.
No longer EYES WIDE SHUT
May 1st, 2007 at 9:52 pm
Howard is an ill-mannered,gutless little git.
Statesman? That’s a car.
May 3rd, 2007 at 3:44 pm
[...] of thousands of refugees. Ken Lovell picks up on the story of Mr Howard’s invitation to a helicopter ride from General Musharaf. The PM, who trades on being courageous, forfeited some points on this occasion. Mark Bahnisch and [...]