Battle for Pakistan is required reading for students of Pakistan and professionals who deal with this byzantine nation of immensely talented but--to this observer--strangely insecure inhabitants.
— Regional Studies
The Battle for Pakistan stands apart. First, Nawaz knows Pakistan inside and out. He understands its byzantine politics—long dominated by the Bhutto and Nawaz families—in which confecting and unraveling conspiracy theories is as popular a preoccupation in Pakistan as NFL football is in the United States. Second, his work stems from a detailed exploration of these events through a wealth of first-hand accounts in the United States and Pakistan. Third, he possesses an unparalleled knowledge of Pakistan’s military. And finally, he applies wisdom and insights to these events as only an expert with his knowledge and expertise can do.
— Parameters
Nawaz has produced a book essential to anyone’s South Asia library. . . . [In] writing with serious intent, Nawaz has created, perhaps, inadvertently, another dark, tragic comedy of duplicity, chaos, misunderstanding, miscommunication, backstabbing, and betrayal. . . . [As] his book illustrates, Pakistan has yet to make [the right] choices and is today as was once described of late 19th century Prussia—not a country with an army but an army with a country. — South Asia Journal
This book should stimulate a much-needed debate among policy circles in Washington and Islamabad. It is a must-read for policy makers, top military officers, diplomats, academics and scholars, not just in the two countries that are its focus, but throughout the globe.— Naya Daur
In this seminal work . . . Shuja Nawaz explores what Pakistan’s war against itself means for the new version of the Great Game now being played in Central Asia, for Pakistan, the US, and the alliance between them. . . . It is a remarkable work by an acclaimed writer on the Pakistani military. . . . It also sheds light on the deep involvement of the US and UK in Pakistan’s internal political battles. The horizontal and vertical fragmentation of the society along political, religious and ethnic lines, which has intensified since 9/11, poses the most serious problem for Pakistan. . . . What makes The Battle For Pakistan substantive and authoritative is that it is based on interviews with senior Pakistani and US military officials directly involved in policymaking during that period. The author has unique access to the centres of power in the US and Pakistan, both of which he considers home. That makes the book extremely objective, covering all sides and dimensions of a roller-coaster relationship.— Dawn
Shuja Nawaz . . . is undoubtedly superbly qualified to write a book about the US-Pakistan bilateral relationship. . . . Given his professional and personal background, Nawaz is highly regarded in both Washington and Islamabad, and this is why this book is such a valuable contribution to better understanding this critical 70-year-old bilateral relationship.
— Australian Outlook
Among the large number of fine books on Pakistan in recent years by academics, think-tank scholars, and practitioners, Shuja Nawaz’s The Battle for Pakistan stands apart. . . Where Nawaz’s book is most distinguishable is his ability to write about both countries with the detachment of an outsider and access of a trusted insider. . . . The Battle for Pakistan is a thoroughly sourced, superbly written book providing comprehensive, richly detailed discussions of several dimensions of Pakistan’s troubled relations with the US, mostly covering the period from 2008 through 2019.
— Middle East Journal
A must read for anyone who seeks to understand the complexities of forming and executing foreign policy in any place, but especially in South Asia. Written with insight, detailed knowledge, keen analysis, and true conviction.— Amitai Etzioni, The George Washington University; author of Reclaiming Patriotism
Shuja Nawaz's important book is as timely as tomorrow's headlines. He's delivering vital guidance to US policy makers―surprisingly misinformed about ties with Pakistan―while, for general readers, he's telling a suspenseful story of diplomacy and intrigue in the toughest of neighborhoods. No one is more authoritative than Mr. Nawaz on the US-Pakistani political-military relationship, and that makes the choices he lays out vital for all of us to understand.— Derek Leebaert, author of Grand Improvisation: America Confronts the British Superpower, 1945–1957
Packed with inside information from the ruling circles in both Pakistan and the United States, this book is essential reading for everyone trying to understand the international community’s most tortuous bilateral relationship.— Owen Bennett-Jones, journalist and author of The Bhutto Dynasty
An intriguing, comprehensive and compassionate analysis of the dysfunctional relationship between the United States and Pakistan by the premier expert on the Pakistan Army. Shuja Nawaz exposes the misconceptions and contradictions on both sides of one of the most crucial bilateral relations in the world.— Bruce Riedel, senior fellow and director of the Brookings Intelligence Project, and author of Deadly Embrace: Pakistan, America and the Future of the Global Jihad
A superb, thoroughly researched account of the complex dynamics that have definedthe internal and external realities of Pakistan over the past dozen years. The Battle for Pakistan is a compelling read that provides enormous insights on the forces at work within Pakistan as the country’s civilian and military leaders determine Pakistan’s way forward at a critical juncture in time.— General David Petraeus, former commander of the US Central Command and Coalition Forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, and former director of the CIA.
With well-researched and meticulously collected information, in-depth analyses and scholarly insights, Shuja Nawaz has produced an impressive and invaluable study of the twists and turns of US–Pakistan relations. Only a person with his understanding of the political dynamics in the two countries could provide such an authoritative and cogent account of how the dissonant but important respective interests of the two countries brought about periods of consequential cooperation. And yet these interests failed to create a basis for a stable relationship which continues to have critical relevance to the complex circumstances of the region. This book will be essential reading on the subject and for examining the past six decades of developments in the region. — Riaz Mohammed Khan, former Foreign Secretary of Pakistan, and author of Afghanistan and Pakistan: Conflict, Extremism, and Resistance to Modernity
Shuja Nawaz has followed up his earlier tour de force on the Pakistan Army— Crossed Swords: Pakistan, Its Army and the Wars Within—with a superbly researched study of the US–Pakistan relationship in all its dimensions. The Battle for Pakistan is essential reading for anyone attempting to fathom the fundamentals of the relationship between the two countries now and in the future. Shuja’s view is truly panoramic and he has masterfully pieced together the many facets of a complex and evolving relationship. His insights and deep analyses are invaluable for understanding the forces of change that are shaping the relationship and Pakistan’s future. — General Jehangir Karamat, former Chief of Army Staff and Pakistan ambassador to the United States
An engaging and insightful exploration of the realities and dynamics that have shaped present-day Pakistan and the US–Pakistan relationship. Nawaz captures the essence of Pakistan’s seventy-year difficult and rocky journey. A relevant and important book. — Chuck Hagel, former US Secretary of Defense and US senator.
Writing about Pakistan is often like travelling through the looking glass, given the vast difference in perception of the nation from the outside and the perception that those within have of the world outside. Just as he did with his last book, in The Battle for Pakistan, Shuja Nawaz deftly manages the journey between what he calls “both homelands”, US and Pakistan: balancing a critical look of Pakistan’s actions on terror and foreign policy in the past decade and a half, with an insider’s account of who said what to whom, unravelling events like the killing of Osama Bin Laden to civil–military tensions, and all that led up to the Imran Khan election. The suggestions Mr. Nawaz proffers at the end of the book bear some careful study as well. — Suhasini Haidar, diplomatic editor, The Hindu.
In The Battle for Pakistan Shuja Nawaz delivers a forensic and illuminating investigation of the troubled relationship between the United States and Pakistan. His work is informed by valuable original interviews and delivers new details and evidence—including about the hunt for Osama Bin Laden—that will be of great interest to scholars, analysts and the general public in both countries. — Steve Coll, dean, Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University, and author of Ghost Wars and Directorate S
Shuja Nawaz has written with deep knowledge and arresting eloquence about what he calls the “misalliance” between two nations that often misunderstand each other, but must ultimately reach an understanding as two vital partners in a necessary alliance. And he writes as a citizen and insider of both countries, with matchless personal knowledge of the personalities who have both made history and will make the future. There is no better or more compelling volume to read about this often troubled, but imperative relationship between two nations on other sides of the world that have been brought into the same orbit by geopolitics, and an increasingdiaspora of human talent. — Scott Simon, Peabody Award–winning host of National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition Saturday.
Shuja Nawaz’s new book, The Battle for Pakistan, makes a critical contribution to our understanding of the turbulence of the last decade in US–Pakistan ties and Pakistan’s fight for its democracy and security. US–Pakistan relations have long suffered because of mutual mistrust, suspicion and misunderstanding. Shuja’s unique access in Washington and Islamabad has allowed him to tell both sides of the story. In doing so, hopefully this book can contribute to improved relations between our two countries in the coming decade and beyond. — General James Jones, former Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, and National Security Advisor to President Barack Obama.
His unique access to centres of power in Washington, Islamabad and Rawalpindi enable Shuja Nawaz to offer rare and fascinating insights into the roller-coaster US– Pakistan relationship. As the Afghanistan–Pakistan drama heads for denouement, The Battle for Pakistan promises to be an invaluable guidebook for politicians, diplomats and soldiers attempting to navigate this South Asian quagmire. — ADM. Arun Prakash, former chief of the Indian Navy and chairman, Chiefs of Staff.
The Battle for Pakistan is required reading for joint force planners and students of the region who seek lessons on mistaken assumptions and skewed perceptions. As U.S. domestic policy takes priority, Chinese investments in Pakistan ramp up, and the U.S. military footprint in the region is minimized, the time has never been more critical for a revision of the U.S. approach to Pakistan as a key regional partner.
— Joint Force Quarterly