SURE, W WAS ALWAYS MORE SUBTLE, BUT THIS WAS THE POINT ALL ALONG:

US wants India to do its dirty work in Pakistan (Ajai Shukla, January 27, 2010, Rediff)

Does anyone recall a top American official publicly declaring that India would be justified in attacking Pakistan if terrorists struck Indian targets again?

I don't. Which is why I believe more attention must be paid to what United States Defence Secretary Robert Gates said last week in India, when asked whether he had counselled restraint to New Delhi in the event of another terror strike.

Gates' reply, "I told all of the Indian leaders that I met with that I thought that India had responded with great restraint and statesmanship after the first Mumbai attack. The ability of any state to continue that, were it to be attacked again, I think is in question..."

That was more of a threat against Pakistan than Washington has made before. Underlining that, Gates emphasised, "It's not unreasonable to assume that Indian patience would be limited, were there to be further (terrorist) attacks."

They have the green light against China too.

Posted by Orrin Judd at January 27, 2010 2:42 PM