WikiLeaks: Kayani 'manipulating' govt from behind the scenes

Cable reveals French official said Kayani had 'learned the lesson of Musharraf' and was staying behind the scenes.

General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani  “learned the lesson of Musharraf” and is manipulating the Pakistani government and parliament from behind the scenes, said Jasmine Zerinini, head of the Government of France’s (GOF) interagency Afghanistan-Pakistan cell, according to a recently released WikiLeaks cable.

The WikiLeaks cable (reference no. numbered 245018), which was released on January 22, 2010, revealed that Kayani had learned a lesson from former President Perver Musharraf and was staying behind the scenes. The cable says Kayani wanted to prevent change on Pakistan’s policy towards Federally Administered Tribal Areas along the Afghan border as he wanted to “stir up controversy regarding the Kerry-Lugar bill that ties continued US aid to increased civilian control of the military.”

Zerinini said that more cooperation from donors, especially from the United States, was needed to strengthen the civilian control over the military.

... the Group of Friends of Democratic Pakistan, while imperfect, was designed to transform Pakistan’s political elite and give them more leverage over the military. However… it is not being utilized.

Another recently released Wikileaks cable (reference no. 172986) dated August 10, 2008, revealed that Kayani used “regular promotion and transfer season” to increase his control over military operations by appointing men loyal to him.

Cable Referenced: WikiLeaks no. 245018

The full text of the cables can be read on Dawn.com, The Hindu and NDTV. WikiLeaks has previously released cables to other media organisations including Guardian and the New York Times.