America’s best approach: work it out if you can

by YankeeJim | November 7, 2010 at 06:00 am

61 views | 0 Recommendations | 0 comments

The US is working with Pakistan for a couple of reasons: 1) they have nuclear capability, and 2) they have al Qaeda. They also have Iran breathing after them. The nation is largely Islamic and they are situated where they can be helpful or a hindrance to US interests. Americans don’t like the Pakistan government. American’s don’t trust their military. Americans frankly are not fond of Muslims, but we don’t say that aloud.

America likes India better because it is more closely aligned. India has many diverse religions and people with different ideas. That is OK because the population isn’t seeking to thrust their beliefs on everyone else. They keep religion and government separate, I think.

The battle between India and Pakistan goes to the heart of their creation following the sloppy departure of British Colonists. In fact, the British just slopped up the entire Middle East, didn’t they?

“In India, Obama faces questions on U.S. relations with Pakistan

Sunday, November 7, 2010; 5:13 AM

MUMBAI - An audience of Indian college students challenged President Obama on Sunday over his administration's relationship with Pakistan's government, drawing a defensive response and a challenge of his own.

"We want nothing more than a stable, prosperous and peaceful Pakistan," Obama told the students gathered in a courtyard of St. Xavier's College to see him. "But I'm also going to say something that may surprise you. The country that has the biggest stake in Pakistan's success is India."

The town hall event, featuring Obama as a professorial host, was a moment of unscripted public diplomacy as he sought to bridge the divide between two bitter rivals. Not only was Obama forced to explain some of the awkward elements of U.S. policy in South Asia, from support for Pakistan to his end game in Afghanistan, but he also provided a rare glimpse at the way he approaches his work.

Encounters with young people have become staples of Obama's travels abroad, a nod to his appeal as a symbol of U.S. progress and tolerance. And in few countries will young people make more of a difference in the short term than here.

More than half of India's 1.2 billion people are under 30 years old, a promising market for U.S. goods and the foundation of a workforce driving the country's technical innovation.

The Indian public's view of the United States rose after Obama took office. But it has since fallen back to its pre-election level amid a sense here that he has neglected India's interests to curry favor with China and Pakistan, which the student who questioned him wondered why he didn't call "a terrorist state."”