Pakistan and the United States are set to hold their first strategic dialogue on Wednesday, but the focus will squarely be on powerful army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who has played a key role in shaping the government's approach to the parleys, which are expected to cover Indo-Pak ties and Afghanistan. General Kayani, who is currently visiting the US at the invitation of Central Command chief General David Petraeus, will participate in the ministerial-level strategic talks.
We need to take the bull by its horns and confront the Pakistan Army directly. However blasphemous and anti-protocol it may seem we must insist that General Ashfaq Kayani be a part of the dialogue process, says Vivek Gumaste.
Asim Munir will have to find a well trusted aide to fill the crucial ISI post's when Asim Malik retires soon.
'Pakistan's army has got a streak of democracy. It is more democratic than the country.'
Pakistan's Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar has said that the Pakistan People's Party-led government was not giving any extension to Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, as he has not asked for the extension of his tenure.
Pakistan's secreted nuclear 'jewels' has hugely burdened the economy as billions of dollars of scarce resources were being expended on modernising and upgrading atomic warheads and delivery systems by the megalomaniacal and paranoid military, says Rahul Bedi
While Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is leading the Pakistani delegation for the Pak-US strategic talks beginning on Wednesday, it is Pak Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani who is actually in charge of running the show.
United States Secretary of State John Kerry and Pakistan Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had a dinner meeting over the weekend to discuss a range of bilateral issues, including the Afghanistan security situation, the White House said on Tuesday.
Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani has received an unusual support from leading Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain, who described him as 'a man of principle'.
While Asim Malik's role in Pakistan's recent warming up of relations with the US is acknowledged, army watchers note a recent distancing, what with Asim Munir not wanting his DG, ISI to share the limelight during his subsequent sojourns to Tampa and Brussels, points out Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
General Raheel Sharif on Friday assumed charge as Pakistan's new army chief at a ceremony in Rawalpindi, where outgoing army chief general Ashfaq Parvez Kayani passed on the command stick to him.
Sections in the US State Department and Pentagon have always felt more comfortable dealing with all powerful Pakistani generals instead of elected civilians, points out Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
Ending weeks of speculation, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday appointed Lt Gen Raheel Sharif as Pakistan's new army chief and Lt Gen Rashid Mehmood as the chairman joint chiefs of staff committee.
'Pakistan's only concern has been while they were on the FATF watch list was to distance their State institutions and organs from any direct connection with the actual execution of militancy inside Kashmir.'
With Pakistan's powerful army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's term coming to an end in November, names of top generals who are likely to succeed him are being discussed in the political circles and in the corridors of power.
But the ISI chief did not retire giving the impression that he has won General Asim Munir's trust, notes Rana Banerji who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
Pakistan's former army chief Gen Pervez Musharraf kept Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani in the dark about Kargil Operation in 1999 despite the latter heading forces responsible to guard (Pakistan-occupied) Kashmir, according to a new book by a former general.
These promotions will allow General Bajwa to shuffle the deck on the top, but this is likely to be a limited reshuffle, points out Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has rubbished media reports of him organising a secret meeting between Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the Haqqani network commander Sirajuddin Haqqani in Kabul last month.
Pakistan's powerful army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani held a two-hour meeting with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf against the backdrop of consultations within the ruling coalition on dissolving parliament ahead of the next general election expected to be held in May.
Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who just couldn't stop praising Pakistani Army General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani , told Congress Thursday that Kayani has purged the so-called 'rogue' elements from the ISI who are in cahoots with the Taliban.
Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has said that the Pakistani forces are fully prepared to give a befitting reply to any 'misadventure' from India.
The 26/11 trial is expected to take an interesting turn with the counsel for Fahim Ansari contemplating the inclusion of Pakistan army chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani's name as the main conspirator.
Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has "learned the lesson" of his predecessor General Pervez Musharraf and prefers staying behind the scene while manipulating the government's decision-making on key issues, according to secret American documents released by WikiLeaks.
The report regarding Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani extending the tenure of Inter-Services Intelligence Director General Lieutenant General Ahmed Shuja Pasha by a year clearly suggests that nothing much has changed in the country and the two still rule the roost, says an article in the New York Times.While experts believe that Kayani's move may also pave the way for his own extension in service, the 'weak' civilian set-up in Pakistan has no other choice.
Pakistan army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani escaped an attempt on his life when Taliban militants fired rockets at an area in South Waziristan tribal agency shortly after his visit to the troubled region.
All-weather friends, China and Pakistan on Thursday pledged to strengthen their military ties and step up their defence cooperation to a "new level" as Pakistan's Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani held talks with top Chinese military officials in Beijing.
The Pakistan army will remain an 'India-centric' institution till the water row between the two countries and the Kashmir dispute is resolved, said General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.Kayani added that the Pakistan army could not afford to let its guard down against India given the history of unresolved issues between the two countries and the latter's military capability. He defended his tough stance saying all war preparations of India seemed to be 'Pakistan-specific'.
Chairman of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey has cancelled his trip to Islamabad, where he was to hold a private meeting with Pakistani counterpart General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani, due to continued wave of anti-US protests.
Pakistan will emerge triumphant in the war against extremism and peace will be restored in the country at any cost, Pakistani Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani said.
Pakistan Army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani held a key meeting with top commanders on Thursday against the backdrop of an escalating row with the civilian government over the memo scandal.
Insiders say that General Kayani's decision to extend Pasha's service has been made to ensure the continuity of the army's offensive against extremists in the troubled tribal regions of the country.
In an apparent riposte to Afghanistan and India, Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Saturday said Pakistan was fully capable of defeating any "external direct threat" despite the current focus of the security forces on internal security.
Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived in Islamabad to hold consultations with in Pakistan army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.
Highest levels of Pakistan's security apparatus, including army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, might have been aware of the plot to bomb the Indian embassy in Kabul in July, United States intelligence and security officials believe, a media report has said.They also believe that the attack was aided by Pakistan's infamous Inter Services Intelligence agency."It's very difficult to imagine he (General Kayani) was not aware," a senior American official said.
If General Asim Munir, Pakistan's new army chief, wants to help defuse the current polarised atmosphere and shepherd civilian politicians towards negotiations on an acceptable date for elections, he may need to distance himself from any perception of needless hostility to Imran Khan, explains Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W, India's external intelligence agency.
Pakistan Army commanders have developed a consensus that their chief, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, should remain in his post till the war on terror takes a decisive turn and the military's achievements can be consolidated, according to a media report on Monday. The army's top brass came to the conclusion during the Corps Commanders and Formation Commanders' conference that concluded last week, The News daily reported.
Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had expressed doubts about a claim by the regime of his former boss Pervez Musharraf that Benazir Bhutto was assassinated by the Pakistani Taliban, a United Nations investigator has said.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif plans to name Pakistan's new army chief weeks before Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's term ends in November to quell speculation about the issue, according to a media report on Monday.
Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani refused an American request to confiscate the cell phone of jailed Lashkae-e-Tayiba commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi being used to direct group's operation from the Rawalpindi jail, reflecting connection between the country's military and the terrorist outfit.
