Deadly fertiliser: Kayani proposes forum to counter IED threats

Says Pakistan has come a long way in its efforts to counter threats posed by homemade explosives.

ISLAMABAD: Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani talking at the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi on Monday proposed to set up a Regional Military Forum as part of an initiative to counter the threat posed by Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).

IEDs have reportedly been the major cause of fatalities amongst the US-led foreign troops stationed in Afghanistan.

Gen Kayani said that the proposed Counter-IED forum, supported by the wider international community, could go a long way in eliminating the threat posed by homemade bombs.

He was talking at the international symposium on “Saving lives by jointly defeating IEDs” which was attended by experts from a number of countries such as United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Turkey.

Pakistan's efforts recognised

Speakers from the US and Britain acknowledged steps Pakistan had taken in recent months to stop the smuggling of calcium ammonium nitrate (CAN), one of the main ingredients used in the IEDs.

According to US, about 80 percent of the IEDs used in Afghanistan have homemade explosives as the main charge, and more than 80 percent of these are derived from CAN fertiliser produced in Pakistan.

Pakistan not the only source of fertiliser

However, the Army chief ventured to dispel the impression that the CAN smuggling was the sole stumbling block in eliminating the threat of homemade bombs.

“Production of CAN has come under national and international focus, to the extent of creating a perception that controlling CAN alone, can remove the menace of IEDs and our arguments against that perception were almost taken as unwillingness to act against IEDs,” Kayani said.

CAN is only one of the precursors of IEDs, he said. There are dozens of others which remain readily available. Moreover, he stressed that Pakistan is not the only country producing CAN. Other countries in the region also produce CAN which has a higher degree of nitrogen content than what Pakistani CAN possesses, he continued.

The army chief further said that Ammonium Nitrate, produced in certain regional countries can contain up to 34-35 percent of nitrogen content as opposed to 26 percent contained in the Pakistani product (F/A).

There is evidence to suggest that as Pakistan tightened the control on the sale and distribution of CAN, terrorists simply switched to other precursors, like Potassium Chlorate, not produced in Pakistan, he argued.

These underlying complexities on the issue, he said, “forces us to adopt a multinational, as well as a country-wide approach.”

The army chief told the conference that contrary to prevalent perceptions, Pakistan has come a long way in fighting IED threat since the last three years.

“Pakistan has taken significant policy initiatives to counter the IED threat. Pakistan Army, aware of the seriousness of the threat, is leading the drive to create a pragmatic, cost-effective and efficient C-IED Strategy,” he explained.

This strategy, he added, aimed at creating awareness, assisting legislation, adopting best practices from across the world, suitably equipping the forces and effectively training them.

Highlighting the challenge posed by terrorism, Kayani said the recently held general elections had amply demonstrated that ‘as a nation we can withstand any challenge.’

“In these elections, people of Pakistan not only courageously withstood the threat of terrorism; they also defied unfounded dictates of an insignificant and misguided minority,” he remarked.

Deputy Director for Operations/Intelligence Integration, Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization, USA, Brig. Gen. Roberts P. Walters Jr. praised Pakistan's efforts to reinforce its border to curb fertilizer smuggling into Afghanistan.