While much of the U.S. military is currently focused on stabilizing Iraq and Afghanistan, extremists in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia pose a longer-term strategic challenge to American interests, the senior U.S. military commander in the region said yesterday. Army Gen. John Abizaid, who heads U.S. Central Command, cited the extremist threat in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia as the “two broadest strategic problems” confronting him, on top of what he called the “immediate problems” of Iraq and Afghanistan. His reference to Pakistan was not surprising given two recent assassination attempts on the country’s president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, who has led a crackdown on Islamic militants. But for a high-ranking U.S. official to voice such worries about Saudi Arabia was unusual. Full Story
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