Thaindian News

Washington, Mar 16(ANI): The best way to persuade Pakistan to ‘end its support for terrorist groups’ is to defeat the Taliban in Afghanistan, senior US lawmaker and former Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain has said.

“Perhaps the most effective way to end Pakistan’s support for terrorist groups that target our partners and our personnel in the region is to succeed in Afghanistan,” the Dawn quoted Senator McCain, as telling the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

General David Petraeus, the commander of US forces in Afghanistan, also said he thought the “way to influence Pakistan is to show that there can be a certain outcome in Afghanistan that means that there should be every effort to help their Afghan neighbours and indeed to ensure that they do that on their side of the border as well.”

Although the committee had called General Petraeus and Undersecretary of Defence Michele A. Flournoy to review the situation in Afghanistan, the hearing also focused on Pakistan.

Senator McCain described Pakistan as “a key challenge” for US policymakers, and counted “the growing instability of the country, the insurgent safe havens … and ties to terrorists of elements in Pakistan’s military and intelligence services” among the major challenges confronting the US.

“The seeming deterioration of our relationship amid the continued detention of US Embassy official Raymond Davis” has further complicated this challenge, he noted.

But unlike committee chairman Senator Carl Levin, who continued to browbeat Pakistan throughout the hearing, Senator McCain urged caution in dealing with Islamabad.

“Here, too, a measure of patience is needed,” he said, adding, “We have sought every means to compel Pakistan to reorient its strategic calculus, short of cutting off US assistance, which we did once before to no positive effect.”

Flournoy agreed with him, saying: “We must demonstrate to our Pakistani partners that we will remain a strong supporter of their security and prosperity, both now and in the years to come, even as we ask them to do even more to defeat terrorism.”

Gen Petraeus informed the Senate committee that his forces were now “coordinating more closely than ever”, with the Pakistani army.

“For example, the Pakistanis push the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, and they go across the border and we are poised, indeed, to be the anvil on which they are driven,” he added.

But this was not enough for Senator Levin, who accused Pakistan of “looking the other way” in North Waziristan and Quetta and thus allowing insurgents to cross into Afghanistan.

“Pakistan may be looking the other way in that regard, but I don’t think we can,” he warned.

Undersecretary Flournoy said that the US needed to continue to strengthen Pakistan’s military and its capacity for governance and development in areas like FATA.

“We can’t walk away from this problem, and we believe a strategy of engagement and investing in the partnership is the best way forward,” she said. (ANI)