Atlantic Council

General Jehangir Karamat, former Chairman of Pakistan's Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1997 to 1998, joined the Atlantic Council's South Asia Center for a discussion on the challenges facing Pakistan's army.  General Karamat was Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States from 2004 to 2006, and he currently heads a Lahore-based think tank called Spearhead Research, which focuses on social, economic, military and political issues concerning Pakistan and Afghanistan.  The event was moderated by Shuja Nawaz, the director of the South Asia Center.

Karamat described militant activity emanating from the tribal areas as a "full-blown insurgency" and predicted a long and protracted, though ultimately successful, struggle to contain the fighting and bring stability and development to the troubled regions.  He added that the most dangerous threat presently posed by the Taliban is its potential to establish links with existing extremist groups elsewhere in Pakistan to carry out attacks deep within the country.  Such attacks could destabilize the civilian government as well as disrupt Pakistani military operations in the tribal areas.

Karamat noted the strong support of the Pakistani population and media for the recent army operations in Swat, citing an awakening to the very real threats posed by the Taliban. 

Ultimately, a lasting stability will of course require not only military resolve, but also political solutions as well.  Although Pakistan has a democratically elected and constitutionally viable government, debates between the President and Parliament over divisions of power remain.  Finally, Karamat said that the large amount of international assistance being offered to Pakistan is a positive opportunity for the country to "get its act together."

Event Transcript

Video:

C-SPAN

Podcast (MP3):

Press Coverage:

• Jahangir Karamat says Pakistan can meet challenges with world support – Associated Press of Pakistan

New Atlanticist South Asia Analysis:

• The Americanization of Afghanistan Continues – James Joyner
• Challenges for U.S.-India Relations – Habeeb Noor
• Time for Peace in Kashmir – Mansoor Ijaz
• India's Election Surprise: What it Means for India and South Asia – Basharat Peer
• NATO Should Help in Pakistan – Leo Michel & Shuja Nawaz
• What is the Threat in Pakistan? – Bernard Finel
• In Pakistan, Great Expectations ... As Yet Unfulfilled – Shuja Nawaz
• Afghanistan Commander Replaced – James Joyner
• Pakistan: Too Big To Fail – Jonathan Paris

Related Publications:

• Afghanistan Report: A Ten-Year Framework for the Future
• Pakistan Report: Comprehensive U.S. Policy Needed
• Alliance Reborn: An Atlantic Compact for the 21st Century
• Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World
• Saving Afghanistan: An Appeal and Plan for Urgent Action

Atlantic Council Highlights:

• James Joyner on the Afghan Experiences of NATO and Russia
• The Future of the U.S.-Pakistan Military Partnership
• Tensions Rise Between United States, Pakistan: Shuja Nawaz on NPR

Afghanistan-Pakistan Events:

• Pakistan's Political System: Building Consensus
• General Casey: Complex Operations and Counterinsurgency
• The Emerging Situation in Pakistan
• General James Jones: First U.S. Speech as National Security Advisor
• Afghanistan's Drug Trade
• General Craddock: The Future of NATO, Afghanistan Operations
• The Future of U.S.-Pakistan Relations
• The Future of Afghanistan: A Conversation with Ashraf Ghani
• Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Obama: Discussions on the New Strategy
• Pakistan: Future Scenarios
• NATO Head: Pakistan FATA Key to Afghan Security
  
• Saving Pakistan’s Economy
• NIC Chairman Thomas Fingar Presents "Global Trends 2025"

More on General Jehangir Karamat:

General Karamat graduated from the Pakistan Military Academy and joined the Armored Corps of the Pakistan Army.  He was in combat in the 1965 and 1971 India-Pakistan Wars. He later commanded an Armored Brigade and served in Saudi Arabia from 1985 to 1988 as the Commander of the Independent Armored Brigade Group.  Promoted to Major General, he was Director of General Military Operations at Army Headquarters.  Upon promotion to Lieutenant General in 1992, he commanded a corps and became Chief of General Staff.  He was promoted to General in 1996 and appointed Chief of Army Staff.  In 1997, he was appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.  In October 1998, he retired from the service.

During his military career, General Karamat led official delegations to China, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Ukraine, Jordan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Iran.  He was a member of the Pakistani team during the India-Pakistan talks in 1990-91 at New Delhi and Islamabad.  Karamat's international awards include the U.S. Legion of Merit and the Abdul Aziz Medal from Saudi Arabia.  He has written on defense management, leadership and the 1971 India-Pakistan War.  General Karamat, who also served as Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States from November 2004 to June 2006, currently directs the Lahore-based think tank Spearhead Research, which focuses on policy solutions to a broad spectrum of security issues.

General Karamat is a graduate of Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad.  He is also a graduate of the Pakistan Army Command and Staff College, the National Defense College and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College.

Photos by Julie Hittle.