“One of the ways weak states try to slow the spread of a rapidly spreading open source insurgency is to embrace it,” writes John Robb, who sees an upside to the Swat truce:
- Open warfare will slow, curtailing the bad effects of a unpopular guerrilla war on Pakistan’s military.
- These groups can now be negotiated with, since it is likely that by giving these Islamic groups local control, it forces them into a position of defending gains. They now have something to lose.
- Internal opposition will mount as these Islamic groups over reach with their application of Sharia.
