The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
US Central Command commander General Joseph Votel conveyed this to Islamabad during a visit last week.
"Militants operating out of Pakistan and Afghanistan continue to threaten Afghan stability as well as stoke tensions between Pakistan and India," Gen Votel said.
The tragic US military attack on a 'Doctors Without Borders' hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz last October was a mistake, a combination of human errors compounded by process and equipment failures, the Pentagon said on Friday.
The US said that it sees positive indicators in Pakistan, but...
The capture of Baghouz comes almost three months (December 2018) after US President Trump declared that IS had been defeated in Syria.
The US president said that there is a lot of "dislike" (between India and Pakistan).
The US has also urged the two South Asian neighbours to avoid further military action.
US defence secy James Mattis said that Syria will pay a 'very, very stiff price' if it used chemical weapons again.
'Traditionally, the US tried to tamp down tensions whenever a crisis situation arose and deputed officials from Washington to travel to Delhi to counsel restraint.' 'This time around, no US envoy flew down to Delhi -- not even when tensions spiked and a flashpoint was reached last week,' points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
