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WASHINGTON: The United States and Pakistan have a shared interest in working together in Afghanistan, National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf said in a phone interview with The Washington Post on Thursday. But the NSA pointed out that cooperation would require fixing the bilateral relationship by moving past problems.

Afghan instability could lead to more terrorism, refugees and economic hardship for Pakistan, Moeed Yusuf said while speaking with Josh Rogin, who worked the interview into an opinion piece which appeared in the newspaper under the headline, Pakistan wants to be treated like an ally, not a scapegoat.

Columnist Rogin said it was unfortunate that instead of addressing Pakistans reservations, the country was being indicted by American media for its alleged support to Taliban over the years. He suggested Washington to seriously consider Pakistans offer of cooperation.

Right now, in the situation we are in, how are US and Pakistans interests not aligned, Moeed Yusuf said in reply to a question.

Im not asking for any sympathy for Pakistan, the NSA said. Im thinking in terms of pure US selfish national interests. How does it help to push away a country of this size, stature and power, he wondered.

Josh Rogin noted that Pakistan stands perennially accused of providing safe haven for the Taliban, but on the other hand officials in Islamabad point out that Pakistan had lost soldiers, as well as thousands of non-combatants, at the hands of extremists since 9/11.

Pakistan is the victim. We had nothing to do with 9/11. We teamed up with the US to fight back and after that there was a major backlash on Pakistan, Moeed Yusuf recalled.

But let all that pass. We need to work out how to move forward as partners because neither side can do without the other in terms of stability in the region.

The US-supported government of president Ashraf Ghani in Kabul, he added, used Pakistan as a scapegoat for its own ineptitude, corruption and unpopularity.

Pakistan helped bring the Taliban to the negotiating table at Washingtons request, got blocked out of the negotiations and was now being blamed for the outcome, the NSA pointed out. Did Pakistan tell the Afghan National Army not to fight? Did Pakistan tell Ashraf Ghani to run away?

Moeed Yusuf said it was obvious the western media had been misreporting the situation in Afghanistan for a long time. Otherwise, he observed, the collapse of the entire state structure within a week was mystifying.

So somebody was lying, somebody was misreporting, or somebody was mistaken about the reality when it came to informing the taxpayers of the Western world.

Recalling a government statement of last week about the Taliban takeover of Kabul, the Washington Post columnist said it becomes apparent there is actually significant overlap with the Biden administrations policy goals.

Pakistan, he wrote, is calling upon the Taliban to work with other ethnic groups for a political settlement that would lead to the formation of an inclusive government in Kabul. Pakistan has urged the Taliban to respect international law and human rights, Josh Rogin said. Islamabad agrees with President Joe Biden that withdrawing all US troops is the right decision.

Pakistan wants the United States to find a way to engage diplomatically with the Taliban, Rogin said, referring to the Pakistani statement. On his part, Moeed Yusuf said Washington should not isolate Afghanistan to punish its new rulers.

Now that the Taliban have the whole country, they dont really need Islamabad as much anymore, he said. Assistance and recognition are the leverage. Who has that? The Western countries have much more leverage in Afghanistan than Pakistan has.

Moeed Yusuf emphasised that the international community must support Afghanistan to avoid a humanitarian crisis in the region.

In an interview to BBC Radio on the situation in Afghanistan, the NSA said Pakistan had so far helped evacuate more than 7,000 people from Kabul and was issuing visas on arrival to those coming through the land route.

Dr Moeed underlined that it was wrong to blame Pakistan for the situation in Afghanistan as it was itself badly affected by the turmoil.

The NSA said if the international community left Afghanistan to fend for itself, a catastrophe is impending.

Published in Dawn, August 27th, 2021

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Pakistan, US should move on and work together in Afghanistan: NSA - DAWN.com

Pakistan's National Security Advisor, Moeed Yusuf interacted virtually on Thursday (August 26) with a wide spectrum of British leadership as he opened up on the ongoing Taliban crisis, stating Afghanistan is at risk of a "security vacuum" without an international push for an "inclusive government".

Yusuf also said that the West has "embarrassed" itself by refusing to listen to Pakistan over its take on Afghanistan's ousted government led by Ashraf Ghani. He added thatthe West should help Afghans by engaging with the Taliban to ensure a "governance model".

In a speech to the Conservative thinktank Policy Exchange and as reported by The Guardian, Yusuf called for an internationally coordinated effort to establish the Taliban government. He mentioned that there's a need to have "an inclusive government, rights protected, a moderate governance model".

ALSO READ | Pakistan is second home to the Taliban, says spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid

Yusuf dismissed the claims that Islamabad had allowed a porous border to give Taliban access in Pakistan, hiding from US forces.

However, this comes immediately after the controversial statement made by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid who claimed that Pakistan is like the "second home" of the organisation and that activities that are not in line with the interests of neighbouring countries are not allowed on the territory of Afghanistan.

'Mistakes of the 90s'

Pakistan NSA warned that if the world repeats the "mistakes of the 90s", the results will not be better than last time. He said, "If we again find the easy path and say 'we are done and out of here,' the international legitimacy of the western world will disappear in one second."

"We will have a humanitarian crisis, we will have instability and we will have a security vacuum that terrorists may fill, again targeting Pakistan first and the western world second," he said.

He also accused the West of turning Pakistan into a "scapegoat" and said that the "world should stand up" now and say we will learn lessons, something has gone wrong.

ALSO READ | 'Biden has blood on his hands': Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers slam US president after Kabul blasts

"When the real problems on the ground a lack of trust, corruption, an army not able to stand up were completely ignored," said Pakistan's NSA.

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Pakistan`s NSA wants the West to `engage` with Taliban for `inclusive government` - WION

WASHINGTON: The United States and Pakistan have a shared interest in working together in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan's National Security Adviser, Moeed Yusuf, has said, but pointed out that it will require fixing the bilateral relationship by "moving past their problems."

"Afghan instability could lead to more terrorism, refugees and economic hardship for Pakistan," he said in a phone interview with The Washington Post columnist, Josh Rogin, whose opinion piece appeared in the newspaper on Thursday under the headline: Pakistan wants to be treated like an ally, not a scapegoat.

Columnist Rogin argued that instead of engaging with Pakistan, the country is being indicted in American media coverage for its alleged support of the Taliban over the years, and he proposed that the US "seriously consider Pakistan's offer of cooperation."

"Right now, in the situation we are in, how are US and Pakistan's interests not aligned?", Moeed Yusuf, asked in the interview, which Rogin worked into his column. "I am not asking for any sympathy for Pakistan," Yusuf said. "I am thinking in terms of pure US selfish national interests. How does it help to push away a country of this size, stature and power?", he asked.

Rogin also noted that Pakistan perennially stands accused of providing havens for the Taliban, but Pakistani officials point out that tens of thousands of Pakistani soldiers have died fighting extremists in their own country since 9/11.

"Pakistan is the victim. We had nothing to do with 9/11. We teamed up with the US to fight back and after that there is a major backlash on Pakistan," Yusuf said.

The US-supported government in Kabul, he said, used Pakistan as a scapegoat to excuse its own ineptitude, corruptions and unpopularity. Pakistan helped bring the Taliban to the negotiating table at Washington's request, got cut out of the negotiations and is now being blamed for the outcome, it was pointed out.

"Did Pakistan tell the Afghan National Army not to fight? Did Pakistan tell Ashraf Ghani to run away?" Moeed Yusuf said.

"The entire state collapsed in a week. So somebody was lying, somebody was misreporting, or somebody was mistaken about the reality and when it came to informing the taxpayers of the Western world."

Noting PM Khan's government last week's statement about the Taliban's takeover, Rogin said it "becomes apparent there is actually significant overlap with the Biden administration's policy goals."

Pakistan, the columnist pointed out, is calling for the Taliban to work with other ethnic groups toward a political settlement to establish an inclusive government in Kabul. Pakistan has urged the Taliban to respect international law and human rights, and he also wrote that Islamabad agrees with President Joe Biden that withdrawing all US troops was the right decision. Pakistan also wants the United States to increase its diplomatic and economic involvement in Afghanistan and to find a way forward to engage diplomatically with the Taliban, Rogin said, referring to the Pakistani statement.

On his part, Moeed Yusuf said, the United States should not isolate Afghanistan to punish its new rulers.

"Now that the Taliban has the whole country, they don't really need Islamabad as much anymore," he said. "Assistance and recognition is the leverage. Who has that? It's the Western countries that have much more leverage in Afghanistan than Pakistan."

In this regard, Rogin carried in his column former US Ambassador to Afghanistan and Pakistan Ryan Crocker remarks in The New York Times last week that the United States made a mistake by disengaging with Pakistan in the 1990s and would be repeating that mistake by turning away from Islamabad now.

"We need to be engaged with Pakistan on ways to assess and deal with this enhanced threat," wrote Crocker. "The prospect of violent destabilization of a country with about 210 million people and nuclear weapons is not a pretty one," the diplomat added.

The NSA told Rogin that the US-Pakistan relationship can't be just about Afghanistan; the two countries share a much broader range of interests. But first, the United States must learn the lessons of the 1990s, when it abandoned Afghanistan. Otherwise it can expect a similar outcome.

"If a security vacuum is left in Afghanistan by abandoning it, you will see that these terrorist organizations take root again. Let's not kid ourselves," Moeed Yusuf said.

In his concluding comments, Rogin wrote, "Given (President Joe) Biden's haphazard withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban takeover, the United States has little alternative but to seriously consider Pakistan's offer of cooperation. Sure, it might not work, but it's worth a shot."

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US, Pakistan have shared interest in Afghanistan: NSA - Business Recorder

Axonius announced that Chris Cochran and Ron Eddings, highly experienced security professionals and the producers and hosts of the popular Hacker Valley Studio podcast, have joined the company as Creative Directors.

Hacker Valley Studio, a Webby Award finalist and one of the most popular cybersecurity shows, with listeners in more than 150 countries, will continue unabated as an independent creative entity. In the latest episode, Cochran and Eddings talked with Axonius CEO Dean Sysman about the next stages of their careers and applying their passion for understanding the human elements of technology to shape the future of how cybersecurity and other professionals grow, share, and give back to the community.

Chris and Ron have a powerful combination of talentshands-on, professional security expertise in top companies and government agencies, and creative, engaging, and very human storytelling skills, said Sysman. Joining Axonius will provide them the freedom to continue producing and hosting Hacker Valley Studio and to build new, fresh content to inspire security professionals and help them navigate constant change, complexity, and challenges in the industry.

Chris Cochran is a former active-duty U.S. Marine Network Intelligence Sergeant with extensive experience in building and leading cybersecurity missions at Netflix, Mandiant, and the National Security Agency (NSA). Ron Eddings has more than a decade of security architecture and operations experience, including work at Intel, McAfee, Palo Alto Networks, Booz Allen Hamilton, and the NSA.

Hundreds of companies trust the Axonius Cybersecurity Asset Management platform to serve as a system of record for infrastructure and intelligence about all assets and their security coverage. Axonius was recently named to the Forbes Cloud 100, a Fortune Best Places to Work, and a sample vendor in the newly coined Cyber Asset Attack Surface Management (CAASM) category in the recently published Gartner Hype Cycle for Network Security, 2021 report.

In just four years, Axonius has skyrocketed to a $1.2B valuation with $195M in total funding and 187% year-over-year annual recurring revenue (ARR) growth in the first half of 2021. The company is actively hiring across a range of engineering, marketing, and operations positions.

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Chris Cochran and Ron Eddings join Axonius as Creative Directors - Help Net Security

Fort Meade NSAFort Meade NSA Relocation Information

Welcome to Fort Meade NSA!

Fort Meade, Maryland, is home to the Defense Information School, the headquarters of United States Cyber Command, the National Security Agency (NSA), the Defense Courier Service, and Defense Information Systems Agency headquarters. Fort Meade NSA provides support and services for the NSA as well as more than 50 other tenant units including military intelligence and police brigades. Fort Meade NSA is the U.S. center for information, intelligence, and cyber operations.

Although an Army base, named after Union General George G. Meade, Fort Meade NSA is host to all five branches of the military which in part accounts for the reason Fort Meade NSA is Marylands largest employer and the Armys third largest installation workforce, including more than 16,000 military personnel and over 30,000 civilians.

National Security Agency Headquarters

Fort Meade NSA is a fully equipped and functioning city unto itself, sized at more than 5,000 acres. The base has the accommodations youd expect from a large installation including an updated commissary and Exchange, but also seven public schools located on base, in addition to robust recreation and entertainment outlets which includes family favorite, Burba Lake.

Fort Meade NSA is in the middle of their East Campus build, scheduled to end in 2023. The East Campus encompasses 242 acres and is the center hub for the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command.

1) If assigned to Fort Meade NSA, where do we live?

Fort Meade NSA offers privatized military housing on base under the management of Corvias. Immediately off base, the most popular cities include Odenton, Hanover, and Gambrills. Further away, but equally if not more popular, are the cities of Columbia, Crofton, and Severna Park. Glen Burnie and Bowie are about 10 miles away, and Annapolis is close to 20.

There are many reasons families choose to live further away in Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. The most common factors are affordability and the need for dual military families who hope to split the difference between duty stations.

2) Where do Fort Meade NSA kids go to public school?

Fort Meade NSA school children are under Anne Arundel County, Maryland, jurisdiction for public schools. There are multiple elementary schools, one middle, and a high school located on Fort Meade NSA, but the schools are not associated with DODEA. Off base public schools in nearby cities, through Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Howard County Public Schools, and Prince George's County Public Schools are also popular possibilities.

3) Does Fort Meade NSA have a hospital?

Fort Meade NSA does not have an ER, but has Kimbrough Ambulatory Care Center. Routine and speciality care appointments as well as same day surgery are options. In this area, U.S. Family Health Plan Johns Hopkins (Tricare Prime) is a prevalent choice for non emergency care off base.

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Official Site: Fort George G. Meade

National Security Agency, Central Security Service

Fort Meade NSA servicemembers and their families benefit from a centralized location on the north side of the National Capital Region (NCR). Fort Meade NSA sits between two major cities, Baltimore, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. both about 30 miles away. The capital of Maryland, Annapolis, (home to the U.S. Naval Academy) is a short drive and a cherished destination for exploring with out of town guests.

Although day to day traffic aligns more with Baltimore patterns, military members relocating to Fort Meade NSA are served well by understanding the term, Inside or Outside the Beltway, due to the likelihood of occasional or regular commutes into Washington, D.C.

Inside or Outside the Beltway is a descriptor for Interstate 495. It is a 64-mile loop around Washington, D.C., that encompasses suburbs of Virginia and Maryland. The Beltway is used to describe where real estate is located, a reference to where political action occurs (inside the Beltway in D.C.), and most frequently in traffic reports. This information is particularly useful if your family includes dual servicemembers. The NCR is one of the easiest places for an active duty couple to be stationed near each other.

D.C. Area Military Installations

Public transportation is integral to the way of life in the NCR. Servicemembers use public transportation to save time and money. The military provides a stipend for public transport and parking can be a challenge depending on location. Fort Meade NSA does have ample parking, but travel for work to the Pentagon or Walter Reed has parking challenges.

Marylands public transportation system, MARC, has a station in Odenton, which is about five miles from Fort Meade NSA. The Penn Line of the MARC runs between Baltimores Penn Station, through BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport, and into Union Station in Washington, D.C., where Metro stops are accessible. If youd like to bypass the MARC and pick up the closest Metro stop via car or bus, look for the Green line and Greenbelt Station.

Because of its location near Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Annapolis, Fort Meade NSA and surrounding area residents have access to year-round adventures, including cultural activities of every kind, sporting events, and the abundance of government and historic buildings to tour. Youll find something for everyone: festivals, museums, food, wine, and concerts.

If interested in major Washington, D.C. events such as the Cherry Blossom Festival, Marine Corps Marathon, Army 10 Miler, or the National Christmas Tree Lighting, do note that these require advance planning, as do visits to the White House or the Pentagon.

Baltimore Inner Harbor image via Mr.TinDC

Fort Meades centric, Mid-Atlantic location provides vacation destinations that include river, bay, and ocean excursions in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Maryland. Western Maryland is known for access to mountain terrain, and many families find themselves heading there to seek relief from humid summers, but also to sharpen their ski skills in the winter.

The Eastern Shore is home to abundant waterside tourist attractions as are the Atlantic Ocean beach destinations such as Ocean City and Rehoboth Beach. Keep in mind theres plenty of additional recreation outlets within a 2-3 hour drive in neighboring West Virginia and Pennsylvania.

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IHG Army Hotels

Candlewood Suites Building 4690

4690 Cooper Avenue Fort Meade, Maryland 20755

410-674-7700

RCI and Housing Services Office

3081 Ernie Pyle St. Fort Meade, Md. 20755

301-677-7748

Corvias Property Management

Leasing and Relocation Center

2965 2nd Army Dr., Fort Meade, MD 20755

410-305-1258

leasing.office@corvias.com

Fort Meade Housing image via Corvias

Corvias Property Management operates six communities on Fort Meade NSA. Floor plans are available in two-, three-, and four-bedroom options and the housing styles range from historic stand alone properties to modern townhouse style homes. The communities are pet friendly with standard restrictions on number, size, and breed. Community Centers are home to resident events, gyms, pools and playgrounds.

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View homes for sale and houses for rent near Fort Meade NSA.

Annapolis, Maryland

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Fort Meade Housing & Information | MilitaryByOwner