Pakistan's New Tack on Fighting Terror

{
  "authors": [
    "Ashley J. Tellis"
  ],
  "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": [
    "Pakistan",
    "South Asia"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Security",
    "Military",
    "Foreign Policy"
  ]
}

In The Media

Pakistan's New Tack on Fighting Terror

By setting consistent groudn rules, Pakistan could gain public support for the war on terror.

By Ashley J. Tellis

Published on May 9, 2008

Source: Yale Global

While the election of a civilian government in Islamabad has been universally welcomed as part of Pakistan’s democratic transition, the new government’s approach to counterterrorism has evoked misgivings in Washington. Reacting to what is viewed as President Pervez Musharraf’s U.S.-backed militarized effort to defeat terrorism, the elected government headed by Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani has sought a more balanced policy combining force with a “civil dialogue” with misled extremists. Instead of dismissing this as yet another bound-to-fail approach, Washington should be patient and let Gillani recover the legitimacy of Pakistan’s counterterrorism policy...

Click here to continue reading.

About the Author

Ashley J. Tellis

Former Senior Fellow

Ashley J. Tellis was a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Recent Work

Paper
Multipolar Dreams, Bipolar Realities: India’s Great Power Future
- Ashley J. Tellis
Commentary
India Sees Opportunity in Trump’s Global Turbulence. That Could Backfire.
- Ashley J. Tellis

Security Military Foreign Policy Pakistan South Asia

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 Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

Commentary
Emissary
Bombing Campaigns Do Not Bring About Democracy. Nor Does Regime Change Without a Plan.
Just look at Iraq in 1991.
Marwan Muasher
Commentary
Diwan
Iran and the New Geopolitical Moment
A coalition of states is seeking to avert a U.S. attack, and Israel is in the forefront of their mind.
Michael Young
Commentary
Carnegie Politika
Baku Proceeds With Caution as Ethnic Azeris Join Protests in Neighboring Iran
Baku may allow radical nationalists to publicly discuss “reunification” with Azeri Iranians, but the president and key officials prefer not to comment publicly on the protests in Iran.
Bashir Kitachaev
Commentary
Diwan
Iran’s Woes Aren’t Only Domestic
The country’s leadership is increasingly uneasy about multiple challenges from the Levant to the South Caucasus.
Armenak Tokmajyan
Article
The Tragedy of Middle Eastern Politics
The countries of the region have engaged in sustained competition that has tested their capacities and limitations, while resisting domination by rivals. Can a more stable order emerge from this maelstrom, and what would it require?
Hamza Meddeb, Mohamed Ali Adraoui

More Work from Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

people watching smoke rising at sunrise from rooftops

Commentary

Emissary

Bombing Campaigns Do Not Bring About Democracy. Nor Does Regime Change Without a Plan.

Just look at Iraq in 1991.

Marwan Muasher

Commentary

Diwan

Iran and the New Geopolitical Moment

A coalition of states is seeking to avert a U.S. attack, and Israel is in the forefront of their mind.

Michael Young

Commentary

Carnegie Politika

Baku Proceeds With Caution as Ethnic Azeris Join Protests in Neighboring Iran

Baku may allow radical nationalists to publicly discuss “reunification” with Azeri Iranians, but the president and key officials prefer not to comment publicly on the protests in Iran.

Bashir Kitachaev

Commentary

Diwan

Iran’s Woes Aren’t Only Domestic

The country’s leadership is increasingly uneasy about multiple challenges from the Levant to the South Caucasus.

Armenak Tokmajyan

A municipal employee raises the US flag among those of other nations in Sharm el-Sheikh, as the Egyptian Red Sea resort town gets ready to receive international leaders, following a Gaza ceasefire agreement, on October 11, 2025.

Article

The Tragedy of Middle Eastern Politics

The countries of the region have engaged in sustained competition that has tested their capacities and limitations, while resisting domination by rivals. Can a more stable order emerge from this maelstrom, and what would it require?

Hamza Meddeb, Mohamed Ali Adraoui