The following recommendations are issued:
• Prepare for a possible international rescue operation in cooperation with the World Bank to avoid failure of the Pakistani economy due to the present unrest.
• Support any Pakistani government’s effort to eradicate militant groups not only in the NWFP and FATA, but also in Punjab and elsewhere across the country.
• Support cautiously any measure of a symbolic nature, which aims at and seems viable as a contribution to conciliation, like establishing an independent commission for investigating the assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
• Promote an agreement between the political actors in Pakistan, including, if necessary, the military, if it can lead to an orderly election procedure.
• If Musharraf goes ahead with his plans for elections on February 18, foreign disapproval should be cautious and withheld if it does not seem inevitably to lead to faulty elections.
• Create preparedness for financial support but also demand the emerging government to initiate a policy of reforms and structural changes of the existing feudal system.
• Prioritize the building of state institutions instead of focusing narrowly on the electoral process.
• Not focus one-sidedly on border security. It is becoming increasingly evident that Quetta and Karachi are also becoming safe-havens for Al-Qaeda and other militants.
• There is a need to change the “strategic mindset” on border security and start viewing the Afghan-Pakistan border as an opportunity rather than a problem. The economic synergy that exists across the Durand Line between Afghan and Pakistani traders is the key to the development of FATA and neighboring communities.
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