Political sentiment in the United States seems to be turning against the interventions and nation-building projects that have characterized US foreign policy in recent years. The revulsion at the cost and size of government, including the cost of expensive wars in the Middle East, has been amply demonstrated during the debt ceiling drama of recent weeks.

Withhold $800 million in military aid, let it go through, or double it- no matter what Washington does it can’t escape the paradox that Islamabad is its most important ally in the war on terror.

It seems that Afghan and NATO authorities are once more seeking a dialogue with the Taliban- even after last year’s debacle of being fooled by a ‘very clever’ Pakistani shopkeeper pretending to be a Taliban official.

In a stark example of how drastically a situation can change in just one week, it seems that Pakistan is once again teetering on the brink.

October 6th, 2010 (Geopoliticalmonitor.com) - A recent upturn in US drone attacks in Pakistan is directly linked to intelligence warning of impending Al Qaeda attacks in Europe.

This weekend’s double bombing in Kampala bears all the hallmarks of an al-Shabab attack. It seems that Somalia’s homegrown strain of the Taliban has struck outside its own borders for the very first time.

Two major developments occurred in Somalia last week: a merger between the Ras Kamboni Brigade and al-Shabab, and al-Shabab’s long-suspected but hitherto unmade declaration of open alliance with Al Qaeda. Both do not bode well for the survival of the beleaguered Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu.

It turns out Islamabad's reprieve is to be short-lived, as the Pakistan Taliban are once again striking at the heart of the Pakistani state.

The rise of militant Islam in Pakistan ranks among countless examples of short-term political gain sacrificing long-term stability.

Far from being a routine reshuffling exercise, Pakistan’s appointment of a new chief for the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) comes amid growing US pressure for reform and concern about the premier spy agency’s loyalty in the “war on terror”.