WikiLeaks: The Saudis' Close but Strained Ties with Pakistan

[Toramana]

WikiLeaks: The Saudis' Close but Strained Ties with Pakistan

With CIA drones buzzing over the mountains of Waziristan and billions of American dollars bankrolling Islamabad as Washington demands that more be done to fight the Taliban, it's hardly surprising that Pakistanis obsess about U.S. intervention. But documents from WikiLeaks' vast trove of U.S. diplomatic cables offer a timely reminder of the machinations of another key foreign player, perhaps even more influential: Saudi Arabia.
Some of the documents released last week describe increasingly strained ties between Pakistan and its long-standing Arab ally, with the Saudis particularly disgruntled by Pakistan's President, Asif Ali Zardari. According to a January 2009 cable, Saudi King Abdullah described Zardari as "the 'rotten head' that was infecting the whole body"; other cables suggest the Saudis would prefer Pakistan to lose its weak civilian leadership in favor of strong military rule. Saudi Arabia was a major backer of the military regime of General Zia ul-Haq, which
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Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/artic...#ixzz17NnxjLVZ

[Khidr]

This was a fascinating article. But surely there's more to House of Saud's distrust of Zardari than his perceived Shia Madhab...??????

[Alchemist]

Saudi Arabia was also exposed on the wikileak cables as a the biggest funder and exporter of terrorism so i do not understand why they speak of zardari as a rotten head on a body, they do not look at their own selves.

Interesting way of looking at things.

I wonder how you felt of the Americans and Saudies when they were funding the mujahideens against the U.S.S.R commies. Saudi is continuing to do what it was doing then too and so is America.