WASHINGTON, July 11: Pakistan’s military rule provides a false sense of security while current western policies towards Islamabad contribute to the country’s weaknesses, says a new report from the Carnegie Endowment.

The prestigious Washington think-tank also blames Pakistan for the worsening security situation in Afghanistan — including the resurgence of the Taliban.

Western policies towards Islamabad … “contribute to regional instability by allowing Pakistan to trade democratisation for its cooperation on terrorism,” the report adds.

In Rethinking Western Strategies Toward Pakistan: An Action Agenda for the United States and Europe, visiting scholar Frederic Grare analyses the cost of continued military rule in Pakistan and presents new guidelines for western policies.

Mr Grare argues that while Pakistan may partially cooperate with the West against international terrorism, without democratisation Pakistan will continue its policies, resulting in continued regional instability.

Key Conclusions:

The Pakistan Army has inflated the threat of religious sectarianism and jihadi extremism outside its borders, particularly in Afghanistan and Kashmir, for its own self-interest. Faced with this seeming instability and a perceived lack of alternatives, the West adopted a more lenient attitude toward Pakistan’s military regime as a moderate stalwart against Islamic extremism.

Restoring stable civilian rule would lessen Pakistan’s obsession with the threat posed by India and focus Pakistan’s energy on its own economic development.

Of approximately $10 billion in assistance given to Pakistan since September 11, 2001, only $900 million has gone to development -- the bulk being channelled to the military. US and European Policy Recommendations:

The West should insist that: General Musharraf cease violating the constitution by holding the position of both president and the chief of the army staff, and free and fair elections be held with international monitoring.

US financial assistance should be explicitly directed towards any shortcomings that impede Pakistan’s cooperation in combating terrorism, and remain dependent on results.

Policies, and if necessary, sanctions, should be directed towards the military and Pakistan’s small elite. The general population should, as much as possible, be shielded from effects of withholding assistance.

The United States should cease its campaign against political Islam in Pakistan. It has proven counterproductive and made US policy dependent on Pakistan’s military, which claims to be the strongest rampart against religious extremism.

“This report proposes a middle way,” writes Grare. “It addresses some of the challenges that the Pakistani military regime’s regional policies create for the international community, arguing that none can be resolved in isolation from the others. Arguing that the nature of the regime is the main source of trouble for the region, it urges a return to a civilian government according to Pakistan’s own constitution.”