05-03-2011, 08:25 PM
Acer wrote:
I don't know if Pakistan's sovereignty and the corresponding international law has really been violated here. We've been operating within their borders militarily with their permission for years, now. Yes, it's been increasingly begrudged, but it has not been revoked.
Well, it's a gray area. We have specific agreements (written, signed agreements) that specify the terms of our conducting military operations within Pakistan's borders. Because these documents are classified, none of us is in a position to say whether the agreements have been observed. What is clear is that Pakistan isn't going to protest or contest the action, and in the tradition of Common Law - no harm, no foul.
However, as a legal precedent, President Obama clearly did not deem it necessary to obtain Pakistan's consent for this operation - and the timeline makes it clear that even if Zardari had objected we would have acted. (That's one of the key reasons not to ask.) In this instance, this isn't a problem. However, there are arguably similar cases in which it could be a huge problem, so the precedent is troubling to me.