Two classified US intelligence reports have said that the American strategy in Afghanistan has a limited chance of success, unless Pakistan hunts down insurgents operating from havens on its Afghan border. According to the New York Times, the reports, one on Afghanistan and one on Pakistan, say that although there have been gains for the US and NATO in the war, the unwillingness of Pakistan to shut down militant sanctuaries in its lawless tribal region remains a serious obstacle. It said that insurgents freely cross from Pakistan into Afghanistan to plant bombs and fight American troops and then return to Pakistan for rest and resupply. The findings in the reports, called National Intelligence Estimates, represent the consensus view of the United States' 16 intelligence agencies, and were provided last week to some members of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees. Meanwhile, American military commanders and senior Pentagon officials have criticized the reports saying that they were 'out of date'. The officials also claimed that the reports were written by desk-bound Washington analysts who had spent limited time, if any, in Afghanistan. "They are not on the ground living it day in and day out like our forces are, so they don't have the proximity and perspective," a senior defense official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said. Earlier, last week, US commander in-charge of NATO operations in Afghanistan, General David H. Petraeus, had praised Pakistan and its Army Chief General Ashfaq Kayani for acknowledging the problem. "General Kayani and others have been clear in recognizing that they need to do more for their security and indeed to carry out operations against those who threaten other countries' security," General Petraeus had said.
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