‘Pakistan is a litmus test for NATO’

The ‘Talibanization’ of Pakistan turned it into the first semi-official caliphate in the whole world, so the presence of NATO forces in Afghanistan becomes totally irrelevant, says RT military analyst Eugene Khrushchev.

“Afghanistan is secondary in importance comparing to Pakistan – the nuclear power with more than a one hundred million population. It is a reality check for Islamabad and Washington,” Khrushchev said.

On Thursday, Taliban insurgents have begun pulling out of the district they recently seized – only 100 kilometres from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. The government demanded that they leave, or threatened to remove them by force.

The militants have reportedly promised to complete their withdrawal from the Buner area by Friday evening.

Lately, offensives in frontier districts have stopped, after a ceasefire was struck in return for introducing Sharia laws in some of the regions.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wants more money to combat extremists in areas like the Swat Valley – partly because attacks on NATO supply convoys have intensified in the past year.