• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Stephen Tankel"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "SAP",
  "programs": [
    "South Asia"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "South Asia",
    "Afghanistan",
    "Pakistan"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Security",
    "Military"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

The Haqqani Network and Pakistani Intelligence

While Pakistan may be using the Afghan insurgency in order to improve its own strategic position in Afghanistan, it remains unclear how much direct control it exerts over insurgent groups like the Haqqani network.

Link Copied
By Stephen Tankel
Published on Oct 4, 2011
Program mobile hero image

Program

South Asia

The South Asia Program informs policy debates relating to the region’s security, economy, and political development. From strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific to India’s internal dynamics and U.S. engagement with the region, the program offers in-depth, rigorous research and analysis on South Asia’s most critical challenges.

Learn More

Source: C-SPAN's Washington Journal

Speaking on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal, Carnegie’s Stephen Tankel examined the complicated relationship between the Haqqani network, Pakistan’s intelligence service (ISI), and Pakistan's overall strategy in Afghanistan. He argued that the Haqqani network is the most lethal insurgent group within Afghanistan, a status it maintains in part through its reliance on Pakistan as a safe haven. He noted, however, that U.S. Admiral Mike Mullen's assertion that the Haqqani network was a "veritable arm" of the ISI is subject to some doubt, as the exact level of Pakistan’s control of the group is unclear. Ultimately, however, Tankel argued that there is little doubt that Pakistan has used the Taliban in order to improve its own strategic position in Afghanistan.

About the Author

Stephen Tankel

Former Nonresident Scholar, South Asia Program

Tankel was a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment, where his research focuses on insurgency, terrorism, and the evolution of nonstate armed groups.

    Recent Work

  • Q&A
    Restoring Trust: U.S.-Pakistan Relations

      Stephen Tankel

  • Q&A
    LeT’s Global Rise

      Stephen Tankel

Stephen Tankel
Former Nonresident Scholar, South Asia Program
Stephen Tankel
SecurityMilitarySouth AsiaAfghanistanPakistan

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • Duterte stands with his fist raised and a crowd of people stand behind him
    Paper
    Duterte’s Populist Foreign Policy as Illiberal Defiance: Consequences and Prospects

    In the Philippines, Duterte-era discourse emphasizing sovereignty, anti-Western skepticism, and strongman diplomacy mirrors tenets of populist foreign policy around the world.

      Aries A. Arugay

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Is Opposition to Online Restrictions an Inflection Point for the Russian Regime?

    After four years of war, there is no one who can stand up to the security establishment, and President Vladimir Putin is increasingly passive. 

      Tatiana Stanovaya

  • A shadow man holds a shadow drone against a blue sky with clouds.
    Article
    The New Revolution in Military Affairs

    How Ukraine is driving doctrinal change in modern warfare.

      • Andriy Zagorodnyuk

      Andriy Zagorodnyuk

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Russia Is Meddling for Meddling’s Sake in the Middle East

    The Russian leadership wants to avoid a dangerous precedent in which it is squeezed out of Iran by the United States and Israel—and left powerless to respond in any meaningful way.

      Nikita Smagin

  • Man speaking into two mics
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Three Scenarios for the Gulf States After the Iran War

    One is hopeful. One is realistic. One is cautionary.

      • Andrew Leber

      Andrew Leber, Sam Worby

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.