Ordering Information
Paper Text,
395 pages
978-0-87003-214-1,
17.95
Cloth Text,
395 pages
978-0-87003-223-3,
35.95
Among U.S. allies in the war against terrorism, Pakistan cannot be easily characterized as either friend or foe. Nuclear-armed Pakistan is an important center of radical Islamic ideas and groups. Since 9/11, the selective cooperation of president General Pervez Musharraf in sharing intelligence with the United States and apprehending al Qaeda members has led to the assumption that Pakistan might be ready to give up its longstanding ties with radical Islam. But Pakistan’s status as an Islamic ideological state is closely linked with the Pakistani elite’s worldview and the praetorian ambitions of its military.
This book analyzes the origins of the relationships between Islamist groups and Pakistan’s military, and explores the nation’s quest for identity and security. Tracing how the military has sought U.S. support by making itself useful for concerns of the moment—while continuing to strengthen the mosque-military alliance within Pakistan—Haqqani offers an alternative view of political developments since the country’s independence in 1947.
"Chronicling Pakistan's Conflicted Past," review by Kenneth Cooper, Boston Globe, August 1, 2005.
Book Event: Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military, July 26, 2005.
"The Making of a Terrorist," commentary on NPR's Face the Nation with Neal Conan, July 18, 2005.
Selected Reviews
"[Haqqani's] analysis will reward anyone who seeks to understand one of the most perplexing foreign policy challenges facing the U.S. today."
Alyssa Ayres,
The Wall Street Journal
"In this cogent, well-informed and extraordinarily informative book, Husain Haqqani describes in detail the unholy alliance between Islamists and military officers that has shaped Pakistan's past and may well determine its future. An important and disturbing tale, deftly told."
Andrew J. Bacevich,
author of THE NEW AMERICAN MILITARISM
"Husain Haqqani has seen Pakistani politics close up. But his book is much more than a memoir: Haqqaani has produced a provocative and controversial history revealing the depth of the links between the army and the Islamic radicals. Required reading."
Owen Bennett-Jones,
BBC, and author of PAKISTAN: THE EYE OF THE STORM
"A well-written and authoritative account from someone who knows Pakistani politics from the inside."
Peter Bergen,
CNN Terrorism Analyst and author of HOLY WAR, INC.
"We are in Husain Haqqani's debt for providing the authoritative account of the linkages between Pakistan's powerful Islamists and its professional army. . . . This brilliantly researched and written book should be required reading for anyone who wishes to understand this increasingly important state."
Stephen P. Cohen,
Brookings Institution, and author of THE IDEA OF PAKISTAN