Deadly Embrace: Pakistan, America, and the Future of the Global Jihad

Necessarily looking back to Partition, this effort establishes a clear historical timeline to illustrate Pakistan's struggle with its own nationhood and with the conflicting agendas of U.S. foreign policy in the region. A former CIA officer and advisor to four presidents, Riedel (The Search for al Qaeda) consistently references his own diplomatic experience along with the wide-reaching perspective that clarifies the elaborate patterns of interdependence that keep India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Kashmir hanging in their increasingly violent balance. Riedel's honesty about the ways in which Pakistan views the "American's continual betrayal" is refreshing and essential, yet he also believes "the drones work," making his position perhaps less objective than much of his tone would imply. Ultimately, his strategies for improving relationships while continuing to fight against the "jihad monster" are convincing. The need to work toward stability in Pakistan, for the sake of its own citizens and of global security, remains undeniable. Riedel elucidates much of why the region seems dire and confusing, a welcome perspective given that without a firm grasp on this history, progress will prove even more illusive. (Feb.)