Cross-border Attacks on Pakistan Counter-Productive:Pakistan to the UK

[tekisui]

Source: Press Trust of India

Islamabad, Jan 19 (PTI) Pakistan's political leadership today told visiting British Defence Secretary John Hutton that cross-border attacks in the country's tribal areas by US and NATO forces based in Afghanistan were counter-productive for the war on terror.

Hutton, who recently assumed the post of Defence Secretary, met Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to discuss bilateral security cooperation, the situation along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and regional tensions after the Mumbai attacks.

Gilani and Qureshi told Hutton that incursions into Pakistani territory by US and NATO forces in Afghanistan were "unacceptable" and counter-productive for the campaign against militants and extremists.

Calling for the US and NATO countries to strengthen intelligence sharing with Pakistan "instead of resorting to drone attacks", Gilani said such incursions affected his government's efforts "to isolate extremists from the peace-loving populace of the tribal areas".

Scores of people, including women and children, have died in a series of missile strikes carried out in the tribal belt by US drones operating from Afghanistan. Several top Al Qaida and Taliban commanders have also been killed in these attacks.

Hutton "conceded that the continuing drone attacks were having serious negative fallout on the Pakistani people's perception on their government's counter-terrorism campaign". PTI

http://www.ptinews.com/pti%5Cptisite.nsf/0/3BB743053AA2A03165257543006CED9E?OpenDocument
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I hope Obama is paying attention.