ABSTRACT
The defining policy of the George W Bush administration has been its Global War on Terror and its associated invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. The crucial characteristic of its opponents in these wars has been that they are Muslim, although other competitors have taken advantage of United States (US) distractions. Pakistan was created as an explicitly Islamic state in 1947-8 when religious violence broke out in British India between Muslims and others, mostly Hindus. Its secret service effectively set up what became the Taliban movement and it provided a conduit for arms supplies to the Islamic fighters. Al Qaeda co-existed with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. Al Qaeda was formed by Arab veterans of the Afghan resistance to the Soviet invasion. With US, Saudi and Pakistani support, the local Afghan resistance assisted by many Islamic foreign volunteers defeated the Soviet occupation force which withdrew in 1989.
