A Buffalo anti-IED vehicle being unloaded from an Antonov An-124 transport aircraft at Kabul airport.
The Buffalo MPCV is the most advanced mine resistant vehicle in the world. It can be configured for multiple missions and is specifically designed to be repaired in the field. Cutting-edge technology combined with the best American automotive components give this vehicle the maximum visibility, load carrying capacity, interior space and parts availability of any vehicle in its class.
These vehicles will be operated in support of all French detachments in Afghanistan, and mainly OMLT, BATFRA (French battalion) or GTIA Kapisa, under the responsibility of combat engineer detachment commanders.
Their mission consists in opening road itineraries used by French troops in theatre. These detachments, operating in close coordination with mine disposal specialists belonging to the NEDEX (Neutralisation, enlèvement et destruction d’engins explosifs, or explosive ordnance disposal) teams that accompany the convoys.
The two types of vehicle work together as a team. Once improvised explosive ordnance is detected and marked by a Souvim, the Buffalo uses its articulated arm to uncover the device, allowing the NEDEX team to neutralize under the most favorable safety conditions.
The arrival of the Buffaloes in theatre will allow French troops to cope with an increase in the number and frequency of IED attacks that threaten Coalition forces. As for the remote-controlled weapon stations fitted to the VAB wheeled armored vehicles, this program is part of the “urgent operational requirements” acquisitions.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
French Deploy Counter-IED Vehicles In Afghanistan / Afghanistan: Arrival Of The Buffaloes
French Deploy Counter-IED Vehicles In Afghanistan / Afghanistan: Arrival Of The Buffaloes
(NSI News Source Info) April 8, 2009: On Saturday April 4, 2009 three Buffalo and two Souvim (Système d’ouverture d’itinéraires minés, or route-opening system in mined terrain) arrived at Kabul airport by Antonov 124 transport aircraft. A Buffalo anti-IED vehicle being unloaded from an Antonov An-124 transport aircraft at Kabul airport.
The Buffalo MPCV is the most advanced mine resistant vehicle in the world. It can be configured for multiple missions and is specifically designed to be repaired in the field. Cutting-edge technology combined with the best American automotive components give this vehicle the maximum visibility, load carrying capacity, interior space and parts availability of any vehicle in its class.
These vehicles will be operated in support of all French detachments in Afghanistan, and mainly OMLT, BATFRA (French battalion) or GTIA Kapisa, under the responsibility of combat engineer detachment commanders.
Their mission consists in opening road itineraries used by French troops in theatre. These detachments, operating in close coordination with mine disposal specialists belonging to the NEDEX (Neutralisation, enlèvement et destruction d’engins explosifs, or explosive ordnance disposal) teams that accompany the convoys.
The two types of vehicle work together as a team. Once improvised explosive ordnance is detected and marked by a Souvim, the Buffalo uses its articulated arm to uncover the device, allowing the NEDEX team to neutralize under the most favorable safety conditions.
The arrival of the Buffaloes in theatre will allow French troops to cope with an increase in the number and frequency of IED attacks that threaten Coalition forces. As for the remote-controlled weapon stations fitted to the VAB wheeled armored vehicles, this program is part of the “urgent operational requirements” acquisitions.
A Buffalo anti-IED vehicle being unloaded from an Antonov An-124 transport aircraft at Kabul airport.
The Buffalo MPCV is the most advanced mine resistant vehicle in the world. It can be configured for multiple missions and is specifically designed to be repaired in the field. Cutting-edge technology combined with the best American automotive components give this vehicle the maximum visibility, load carrying capacity, interior space and parts availability of any vehicle in its class.
These vehicles will be operated in support of all French detachments in Afghanistan, and mainly OMLT, BATFRA (French battalion) or GTIA Kapisa, under the responsibility of combat engineer detachment commanders.
Their mission consists in opening road itineraries used by French troops in theatre. These detachments, operating in close coordination with mine disposal specialists belonging to the NEDEX (Neutralisation, enlèvement et destruction d’engins explosifs, or explosive ordnance disposal) teams that accompany the convoys.
The two types of vehicle work together as a team. Once improvised explosive ordnance is detected and marked by a Souvim, the Buffalo uses its articulated arm to uncover the device, allowing the NEDEX team to neutralize under the most favorable safety conditions.
The arrival of the Buffaloes in theatre will allow French troops to cope with an increase in the number and frequency of IED attacks that threaten Coalition forces. As for the remote-controlled weapon stations fitted to the VAB wheeled armored vehicles, this program is part of the “urgent operational requirements” acquisitions.
President Barack Obama In The White House On April 8, 2009
President Barack Obama In The White House On April 8, 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama arrives (Photo: above) to speak to troops at Camp Victory in Baghdad, April 7, 2009.
(NSI News Source Info) April 8, 2009: President Barack Obama arrives (Photo: below) on the South Lawn of the White House on Wednesday, April 8, 2009 in Washington after returning from an eight-day European trip and a five-hour visit to the Iraq war zone.
South Korea Approves 15-Year Defense Technology Plan / South Korea To Secure Indigenous Weapons Technology By 2024
South Korea Approves 15-Year Defense Technology Plan / South Korea To Secure Indigenous Weapons Technology By 2024
(NSI News Source Info) April 8, 2009: The Ministry of National Defense plans to bring up the country’s weapons techn
ology to the world class by 2014 while working to develop the country’s indigenous technologies by 2024. Simulation-based acquisition system will also be introduced.
ology to the world class by 2014 while working to develop the country’s indigenous technologies by 2024. Simulation-based acquisition system will also be introduced. At the 34th Defense Project Execution Committee meeting chaired by Defense Minister Lee Sang Hee, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) reviewed and approved the plans in a Defense Technology Development Plan that outlines the country’s goals between 2011 and 2025.
The Defense Technology Development Plan is a set of bold plans that include a roadmap for the development of new weapons technologies based on the country’s future needs in future warfare.
The plan consists of eight main objectives under a vision to secure ‘world class defense technology capabilities’ that include the establishment of a defense research and development system to develop indigenous weapons technology by 2024, improving the efficiency of investment on defense research and development and reinforcing research and development infrastructure.
It especially aims to diversify research and development systems by introducing Simulation Based Acquisition (SBA) and Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD) systems to help establish a consolidated management system.
The SBA is a system where a new weapon or equipment will be tested under simulated environments from the very development stage to the actual deployment stage to verify the need for the new weapons and to help reduce the time and resources required to develop them. The ACTD is a system designed to help quickly introduce existing technologies of the civilian sector to the military, and has been put to use by the United States since 1994 and our military has also been applying the system since 2007 in its development of new portable tactical computer workstations.
The Defense Technology Promotion Plan also outlines plans for the development and improvement of eight major weapons systems, including command and communications systems, while also calling for improving the competitiveness of the defense research and development sector by securing new infrastructure and strengthening cooperation between the civilian and military sectors.
Meanwhile, the Defense Project Execution Committee decided to replace the presidential plane with a new plane to be purchased from a foreign manufacturer as the existing one introduced in 1985 is limited to flying only short distances.
“Under the decision, the DAPA will review all the aircraft that can be used as a command aircraft and submit its purchase plan to the Defense Project Execution Committee by August,” a DAPA official said, noting the country will be able to announce its contract for bids in January once it secures the necessary funds in next year’s budget.
U.S. Gen.: Growing Threat From Cyber Attacks
U.S. Gen.: Growing Threat From Cyber Attacks
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - April 8, 2009: Cyber attacks pose an increasingly serious and costly threat to U.S. government and commercial networks, a U
.S. general warned on April 7.
The attacks range from relatively simple attempts by teenagers to highly sophisticated cyber assaults, said Gen. John Davis, deputy commander of the joint task force for global operations.
Although there were safeguards for military networks, attacks on commercial networks also were cause for concern, Davis said.
"Even the indirect threat is of concern to us because a lot of our systems in the military ride over the commercial infrastructure," he said.
The Pentagon several months ago was faced with "a particular worm that was concerning us that intruded into our military networks," Davis said.
Last year the Defense Department prohibited the use of external computer flash drives to counter a virus threat.
The Defense Department spent more than $100 million in the past six months repairing the damage done by the cyber attacks, said Davis by telephone from a conference in Nebraska.
The money was spent on technology and technicians - including contractors - to respond to the cyber attacks, he said.
As an example, he said cleaning up a single affected computer cost between $5,000 to $7,000.
But Davis said it was crucial to invest in preventing the cyber attacks instead of spending money afterward.
"It would be a much wiser investment of resources to do that in a pro-active manner so we were preventing these things from being able to get into our networks."
Davis welcomed plans presented April 6 by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to fund an increase in cyber experts with stepped-up training efforts.
Under the secretary's recommendations, the Pentagon would aim to train 250 cyber experts a year instead of the current 80 students.
U.S. President Barack Obama has put a priority on cyber security and ordered an elaborate review of the issue.
A top U.S. cybersecurity official quit last month, complaining in a resignation letter that U.S. cyber protection efforts were flawed and dominated by the super-secret National Security Agency (NSA).
.S. general warned on April 7.
The attacks range from relatively simple attempts by teenagers to highly sophisticated cyber assaults, said Gen. John Davis, deputy commander of the joint task force for global operations.
Although there were safeguards for military networks, attacks on commercial networks also were cause for concern, Davis said.
"Even the indirect threat is of concern to us because a lot of our systems in the military ride over the commercial infrastructure," he said.
The Pentagon several months ago was faced with "a particular worm that was concerning us that intruded into our military networks," Davis said.
Last year the Defense Department prohibited the use of external computer flash drives to counter a virus threat.
The Defense Department spent more than $100 million in the past six months repairing the damage done by the cyber attacks, said Davis by telephone from a conference in Nebraska.
The money was spent on technology and technicians - including contractors - to respond to the cyber attacks, he said.
As an example, he said cleaning up a single affected computer cost between $5,000 to $7,000.
But Davis said it was crucial to invest in preventing the cyber attacks instead of spending money afterward.
"It would be a much wiser investment of resources to do that in a pro-active manner so we were preventing these things from being able to get into our networks."
Davis welcomed plans presented April 6 by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to fund an increase in cyber experts with stepped-up training efforts.
Under the secretary's recommendations, the Pentagon would aim to train 250 cyber experts a year instead of the current 80 students.
U.S. President Barack Obama has put a priority on cyber security and ordered an elaborate review of the issue.
A top U.S. cybersecurity official quit last month, complaining in a resignation letter that U.S. cyber protection efforts were flawed and dominated by the super-secret National Security Agency (NSA).Russia Makes Year's First Uranium Shipment To U.S.
Russia Makes Year's First Uranium Shipment To U.S.
(NSI News Source Info) MOSCOW - April 8, 2009: Russia's Techsnabexpor
t shipped on April 7 the first batch of low-enriched uranium to the United States in 2009 under a bilateral agreement, nuclear-power corporation Atomenergoprom said on Wednesday.
Techsnabexport, a Russian company that exports goods and services produced by the nuclear power sector, is integrated into Atomenergoprom.
"This shipment has initiated the schedule of deliveries in 2009, which will be carried out at a new price approved by the governments of both countries," Atomenergoprom said in a statement.
Russia and the United States are cooperating in the nuclear sphere on the HEU-LEU project. The HEU-LEU contract, also known as the Megatons to Megawatts agreement, was signed in February 1993 and expires in 2013.
It aims to convert 500 metric tons of high-enriched uranium (HEU), the equivalent of approximately 20,000 nuclear warheads, from dismantled Russian nuclear weapons into low-enriched uranium (LEU), which is then converted into nuclear fuel for use in U.S. commercial reactors.
t shipped on April 7 the first batch of low-enriched uranium to the United States in 2009 under a bilateral agreement, nuclear-power corporation Atomenergoprom said on Wednesday.
Techsnabexport, a Russian company that exports goods and services produced by the nuclear power sector, is integrated into Atomenergoprom.
"This shipment has initiated the schedule of deliveries in 2009, which will be carried out at a new price approved by the governments of both countries," Atomenergoprom said in a statement.
Russia and the United States are cooperating in the nuclear sphere on the HEU-LEU project. The HEU-LEU contract, also known as the Megatons to Megawatts agreement, was signed in February 1993 and expires in 2013.
It aims to convert 500 metric tons of high-enriched uranium (HEU), the equivalent of approximately 20,000 nuclear warheads, from dismantled Russian nuclear weapons into low-enriched uranium (LEU), which is then converted into nuclear fuel for use in U.S. commercial reactors. Fidel Castro Hails 'Great Meeting' With U.S. Lawmakers
Fidel Castro Hails 'Great Meeting' With U.S. Lawmakers
(NSI News Source Info) HAVANA - April 8, 2009: Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has said his meeting with a g
roup of U.S. lawmakers in Havana, his first with senior U.S. officials in years, was a "great meeting" that held "particular importance for me."
Cuba's longtime communist leader, 82, met with seven members of the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus on Tuesday, a day after their meeting with his brother, President Raul Castro, amid signs that the countries could normalize relations.
In an article in the ruling Communist Party's Granma newspaper, Castro said: "Our meeting lasted one hour and 45 minutes, judging by the clock, but in fact just half a minute, in terms of how quickly it flew by, and how I wanted to listen to them," he said.
He said the sides discussed U.S. President Barack Obama's proposal on lifting the trade embargo on Cuba. "We expressed our view that the objective realities in the U.S. have been stronger than Obama's most sincere intentions," he said.
After their return to the U.S., the caucus members said Washington must consider ending the trade embargo on Cuba, along with the diplomatic restrictions that have been in place for half a century.
California Representative Laura Richardson said: "The point is, it's history, and we need to move forward."
Barbara Lee, who led the delegation visit, said: "Our conclusion is, given the new direction in our foreign policy, that it's time to look at a new direction in our policy toward Cuba... The 50-year embargo just hasn't worked."
Fidel Castro had not met with American officials since he underwent intestinal surgery in July 2006.
Lee also said Castro seemed "energetic," and in good health.
"We met at his house, a house of very modest means. His wife was there, his son was taking photographs of us."
During their five-day visit, which started on Friday, the delegation also met with National Assembly speaker Ricardo Alarcon and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.
U.S. House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, commenting on her colleagues' visit, admitted on CNN that the embargo "has not accomplished much."
The U.S. trade embargo on Cuba has been in force since 1962, and has since been reinforced by several legislative acts.
President Obama has said he will maintain the embargo until Cuba shows progress on human rights and democracy. However, The U.S. Congress is currently considering lifting the ban on Americans visiting Cuba, and U.S. media have said Obama could soon lift a number of restrictions, including limits on money transfers between the countries.
roup of U.S. lawmakers in Havana, his first with senior U.S. officials in years, was a "great meeting" that held "particular importance for me."
Cuba's longtime communist leader, 82, met with seven members of the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus on Tuesday, a day after their meeting with his brother, President Raul Castro, amid signs that the countries could normalize relations.
In an article in the ruling Communist Party's Granma newspaper, Castro said: "Our meeting lasted one hour and 45 minutes, judging by the clock, but in fact just half a minute, in terms of how quickly it flew by, and how I wanted to listen to them," he said.
He said the sides discussed U.S. President Barack Obama's proposal on lifting the trade embargo on Cuba. "We expressed our view that the objective realities in the U.S. have been stronger than Obama's most sincere intentions," he said.
After their return to the U.S., the caucus members said Washington must consider ending the trade embargo on Cuba, along with the diplomatic restrictions that have been in place for half a century.
California Representative Laura Richardson said: "The point is, it's history, and we need to move forward."
Barbara Lee, who led the delegation visit, said: "Our conclusion is, given the new direction in our foreign policy, that it's time to look at a new direction in our policy toward Cuba... The 50-year embargo just hasn't worked."
Fidel Castro had not met with American officials since he underwent intestinal surgery in July 2006.
Lee also said Castro seemed "energetic," and in good health.
"We met at his house, a house of very modest means. His wife was there, his son was taking photographs of us."
During their five-day visit, which started on Friday, the delegation also met with National Assembly speaker Ricardo Alarcon and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.
U.S. House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, commenting on her colleagues' visit, admitted on CNN that the embargo "has not accomplished much."
The U.S. trade embargo on Cuba has been in force since 1962, and has since been reinforced by several legislative acts.
President Obama has said he will maintain the embargo until Cuba shows progress on human rights and democracy. However, The U.S. Congress is currently considering lifting the ban on Americans visiting Cuba, and U.S. media have said Obama could soon lift a number of restrictions, including limits on money transfers between the countries. Russia Testing New Armored Vehicles For Military And Export: Reports
Russia Testing New Armored Vehicles For Military And Export: Reports
(NSI News Source Info) MOSCOW - April 8, 2009: The BTR-90 is intended for the transport of a section of infantry, and is a further development of the line of wheel BTR with increased firepower, mobility, passability/trafficability, maneuverability and protection.
In 1994 the Russian Army publicly displayed the BTR-90 [BTR = Bronyetransporter - Armored Transporter]. This vehicle has a slightly larger and higher hull than the previous BTR-80, with a pointed nose resembling LAV-25.
Testing the new Russian BTR-90 wheeled armored personnel carrier (APC) with the Berezhok weapons complex at the Arzamas Engineering Plant, part of the Defense Industry Company.
It is unclear if the BTR-90 will be produced for the Russian Army or for export only. While it has the same turret as the BMP-2 , production vehicles (assuming it is accepted into service) are almost certain to have a different turret. The armored personnel carrier APC-90 has the highest benchmarks of flotation ability (all-wheel drive, independent suspension, swimming ability, low ground pressure), of mobility (high cross-country and highway speeds, offhand overcoming of water obstructions), of maneuvering capabilities (small turning radius and the ability to move forward and backward at equal speeds), of survivability (the ability to move even with all the four wheels damaged, bulletproof tires).
An armored personnel carrier of the new generation- BTR-90, has four types of weapons installed in one and the same section. These are an automatic gun, a machine-gun, a grenade launcher and an anti-tank missile complex. The equipment makes it possible to wage a fight against tanks, artillery pieces, mechanized infantry combat vehicles, helicopters and manpower of the enemy at a distance of over 4 kilometers both from a position and in movement. The high weight-carrying capacity and considerable inner capacity (12 cubic meters) of the eight-wheel BTR-90 allow to transport heavier weapons, such as an anti-tank gun, a 120-millimetre artillery piece and anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles. BTR-90 can move at a speed of 100 kilometers per hour on motorways and over 50 kilometers per hour on highly-broken ground. It can move even if its four wheels have been damaged. Despite a relatively big weight (about 21 tons) BTR-90 can without any preparations move across water obstacles due to two water-jet propellers. The machine can sail at under three-point weather and can easily travel aboard and off a landing ship. BTR-90 is the first of the armored personnel carriers which can be equipped with an automatic control system to carry out an effective control of the transmission and engine and other vitally-important parts of the machine. 
Testing the new Russian SPM-3 Medved (Bear) armored car at the Arzamas Engineering Plant.
Armoring and bulletproof shields protect the crew and systems from the bullets of heavy machine guns and splinters of projectiles.On BTR can be established additional armoring and systems of passive (dynamic) and active protection. The devices of collective protection provide protection of combat crew from the action of shock wave and penetrating radiation during the nuclear explosions, from the radioactive dust, bacteriological, chemical weaponry during the application of a machine in contaminated area.
Testing the new Russian SPM-3 Medved (Bear) armored car at the Arzamas Engineering Plant.
Armoring and bulletproof shields protect the crew and systems from the bullets of heavy machine guns and splinters of projectiles.On BTR can be established additional armoring and systems of passive (dynamic) and active protection. The devices of collective protection provide protection of combat crew from the action of shock wave and penetrating radiation during the nuclear explosions, from the radioactive dust, bacteriological, chemical weaponry during the application of a machine in contaminated area.'Kumar' Goes To White House -- Gets Job
'Kumar' Goes To White House -- Gets Job
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - April 8, 2009: Actor Kal Penn, who stumped around the country for the Obama presidential campaign, is going to leave Hollywood to work in the Obama White House.
Penn had a recurring role on the Fox TV show "House," but his character killed himself in Monday's episode. The character's reasons were left a mystery to the show's fans, but Penn explained his own decision to EW.com. 
Kal Penn's character in "House" was just killed off. Penn was one of the stars in "Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle." (FOX/AP)
"I thought this might be the right time to go off and do something else," Penn said. "The ultimate irony, of course, is that I love being on 'House.' "
Penn also starred as Kumar in the drug- and raunch-soaked "Harold and Kumar" movies.
Penn, whose parents are Indian-American, will work with the Asian-American and arts communities in the White House Office of Public Liaison.
"They do outreach with the American public and with different organizations," he told EW. "They're basically the front door of the White House. They take out all of the red tape that falls between the general public and the White House."
Kal Penn's character in "House" was just killed off. Penn was one of the stars in "Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle." (FOX/AP)
"I thought this might be the right time to go off and do something else," Penn said. "The ultimate irony, of course, is that I love being on 'House.' "
Penn also starred as Kumar in the drug- and raunch-soaked "Harold and Kumar" movies.
Penn, whose parents are Indian-American, will work with the Asian-American and arts communities in the White House Office of Public Liaison.
"They do outreach with the American public and with different organizations," he told EW. "They're basically the front door of the White House. They take out all of the red tape that falls between the general public and the White House."PUMA News Automobile Technology By Segway Inc. And General Motors Corp.
PUMA News Automobile Technology By Segway Inc. And General Motors Corp.
(NSI News Source Info) April 8, 2009: Mike Gansler, Director of Core Technology with Segway Inc., drives a Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility, or PUMA, project prototype vehicle in New York's Times Square on Sunday, April 5, 2009.
Segway Inc. and General Motors Corp. announced Tuesday that they are working together to develop the two-wheeled, two-seat electric vehicle designed to be a fast, efficient, inexpensive and clean alternative to traditional cars and trucks in an urban environment.
Pakistan: ISI Chief Pasha Snubs US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke And Admiral Mike Mullen
Pakistan: ISI Chief Pasha Snubs US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke And Admiral Mike Mullen
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - April 8, 2008: Apparently upset with their remarks over alleged link between ISI, Taliban and Al-Qaeda, the Pakistani spy agency chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha refused to meet visiting US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke and American military commander Admiral Mike Mullen. 
In this Aug. 27, 2008 photo released by the U.S. Department of Defense, Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen and Navy Rear Adm. Scott van Buskirk, from left, talk with Pakistani Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, center, and Director General, Military Operations, Major Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, on the flight deck aboard USS Abraham Lincoln, in the Gulf. Pasha, the new chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, oversaw military offensives against militants in Pakistan's restive northwest tribal areas.
"Islamabad carefully stage-managed this unprecedented snub by the ISI chief as a means of telegraphing its resentment over a number of issues brewing between Washington and Islamabad," Stratfor, a US think-tank, reported.
This sudden display of confidence on the part of Islamabad will complicate the Obama administration's strategy on the Taliban, the think tank said on Tuesday.
Among the issues of resentment by ISI include, criticism from Mullen and US Central Command chief Gen David Petraeus, who said the intelligence agency was still dealing with the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and the increasing US unmanned aerial vehicle strikes in the Pakistani tribal belt.
The ISI and its support base in Pakistan establishment is also upset with American strategy of treating Afghanistan and Pakistan as one theatre and the US's move to involve India in Afghanistan, Stratfor said.
"The snub is also part of an emerging consensus between Pakistan's military and civilian government that Islamabad needs to increase its bargaining power with the US as an ally in the war against militant Islamists," the report said.
In this Aug. 27, 2008 photo released by the U.S. Department of Defense, Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen and Navy Rear Adm. Scott van Buskirk, from left, talk with Pakistani Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, center, and Director General, Military Operations, Major Gen. Ahmad Shuja Pasha, on the flight deck aboard USS Abraham Lincoln, in the Gulf. Pasha, the new chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, oversaw military offensives against militants in Pakistan's restive northwest tribal areas.
"Islamabad carefully stage-managed this unprecedented snub by the ISI chief as a means of telegraphing its resentment over a number of issues brewing between Washington and Islamabad," Stratfor, a US think-tank, reported.
This sudden display of confidence on the part of Islamabad will complicate the Obama administration's strategy on the Taliban, the think tank said on Tuesday.
Among the issues of resentment by ISI include, criticism from Mullen and US Central Command chief Gen David Petraeus, who said the intelligence agency was still dealing with the Taliban and Al-Qaeda and the increasing US unmanned aerial vehicle strikes in the Pakistani tribal belt.
The ISI and its support base in Pakistan establishment is also upset with American strategy of treating Afghanistan and Pakistan as one theatre and the US's move to involve India in Afghanistan, Stratfor said.
"The snub is also part of an emerging consensus between Pakistan's military and civilian government that Islamabad needs to increase its bargaining power with the US as an ally in the war against militant Islamists," the report said.
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