McCain has supported indirectly arming and funding Taliban and Al Qaeda

Why is the Bush admin still giving Pakistan military aid when NATO say Pakistan's military intelligence arming, training, funding Taliban ? And why has McCain - supposedly a foreign policy expert - supported this? Is indirectly arming the people killing US and British troops in Afghanistan "keeping Americans safe"?

(This is an update on a previous post - Palining around with terrorists )

The McCain campaign claims Obama pals around with terrorists on the basis that Bill Ayers sat on the same community council as Obama. Obama was eight years old when Ayers was involved with Weathermen bombing plots in the US. His campaign has condemned them.

McCain and Palin support the Bush administration’s policy of supporting and funding Pakistan’s military - and until August the dictatorship of General Musharraf, who’s an ally of the Taliban who warned the Northern Alliance against “taking advantage” of the US invasion to overthrow them (1).

Pakistani author Ahmed Rashid and a June 2006 NATO and Afghan joint intelligence report titled ‘Insurgency and Terrorism in Afghanistan’ found Pakistan's ISI military intelligence still arms and supports the Taliban who aid Al Qaeda, their aim being to counter Indian influence and intimidate Pakistan’s secular parties to promote military rule in Pakistan.Many British and American diplomats, intelligence agents and senior military officers have said the same and have been furious that the Bush administration wouldn't put any real pressure on Musharraf to end ISI involvement with the Taliban.ISI officers even threaten Pakistanis into joining the Taliban - and Pakistani forces aid Taliban in retreats into Pakistan after raids into Afghanistan - even giving them covering artillery fire. Before Benazir Bhutto's death Musharraf released 28 members of extremist groups from prison - including 8 who had said they planned to carry out suicide bombings. (2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9).

Taliban and Al Qaeda leaders also co-operate closely in Pakistan and Afghanistan, meaning US money and arms has probably reached Al Qaeda too after the ISI provided it to the Taliban.

The Bush administration, even after being told all this, effectively arms and funds the Taliban and Al Qaeda, who are killing US and British troops in Afghanistan, by handing military aid and weapons sales to Pakistan’s military, with Mccain and Palin’s approval. Some “foreign policy expert” McCain is - and so much for the Bush administration and McCain “keeping Americans safe”.

(1) = New York Times 09 Oct 2001 , 'Pakistani Is Already Calling on U.S. to End Airstrikes Quickly', http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D01E3D9113CF93AA35753C1A9679C8B63


(2) = Ahmed Rashid (2008) , ‘Descent Into Chaos’, Penguin, London & NY, 2008, (hardback edition) especially Chapter 17 and esp 367-368 and note 35 on page 452 (notes for ch17) on June 2006 internal NATO and Afghan intelligence report on Pakistan’s ISI military intelligence training, funding , arming of Taliban in Pakistan for attacks in Pakistan , but also pages 77-78, 48, 50, 114, 116 and rest of Ch17

(3) = Telegraph 06 Oct 2006 ‘Nato's top brass accuse Pakistan over Taliban aid’,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1530756/Nato's-top-brass-accuse-Pakistan-over-Taliban-aid.html

(4) = Independent 14 March 2006, ‘Pakistanis accused of aiding Taliban with missile parts’, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/pakistanis-accused-of-aiding-taliban-with-missile-parts-469798.html

(5) = Guardian 19 May 2006, ‘Pakistan sheltering Taliban, says British officer’,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/may/19/pakistan.alqaida

(6) = Times 8 Oct 2006 ‘Britain says Pakistan is hiding Taliban chief’,
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article665054.ece

(7) = Times 21 Jab 2007 ‘Pakistan accused of backing Taliban’,
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/01/21/asia/web.0121pakistan.php?page=1

(8) = Times 27 Dec 2007 ‘Main suspects are warlords and security forces’,
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3100052.ece

(9) = IHT 01 Oct 2008 ‘Spanish report ties Pakistan spy agency to Taliban’,
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/01/europe/EU-Spain-Pakistan-Taliban.php