World | Pakistan
Gilani demands US respect for sovereignty
New missile strike by us drones in tribal area on afghan border was counterproductive, says prime minister
- By Shahid Hussain, Correspondent
- Published: 00:18 September 19, 2008
- Gilani, referring to his talks Wednesday with Mullen, said the war against terrorism and extremism was in Pakistan's own national interest.
- Image Credit: Gulf News Archive
Islamabad: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said on Thursday the US had been clearly told there would be no compromise on Pakistan's sovereignty - one day after a new missile strike by US drones in a Pakistani tribal area along the Afghan border.
According to media reports six people were killed when drones fired four missiles on a house in South Waziristan only hours after US top military commander Mike Mullen gave an assurance the US would respect the country's sovereignty.
National dailies splashed the assurance with comments that the drone attack belied Mullen's assurance.
Gilani said during a meeting with provincial ministers from the frontier province bordering Afghanistan that no foreign forces would be allowed to attack targets inside Pakistan.
He said such strikes were counterproductive and fuelled militancy and called for greater intelligence sharing and coordination between the security forces of Pakistan and the US-led coalition forces based in Afghanistan.
Gilani, referring to his talks Wednesday with Mullen, said the war against terrorism and extremism was in Pakistan's own national interest.
Separately, foreign minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi said that Pakistan was not informed about Wednesday's missile strike in South Waziristan.
Qureshi said the prime minister during his meeting with Mullen had conveyed Pakistan's point of view and the sentiments of its people in clear terms.
The minister said it was established rule that if any action were required inside Pakistan it would be taken by the country's own forces while action inside Afghanistan would be conducted by the international forces.
Qureshi avoided a condemnation of Wednesday's incident. He underlined that Pakistan too had a responsibility to ensure that there was no violation of territory of others from its side.
The foreign minister rebuffed those criticising the government's handling of the threat to the country's sovereignty. He said the government was protecting national interest and sovereignty but it had to be mindful of all factors.
"We do need to increase the number of friends for Pakistan and not create more enemies," he remarked.
Clear commitment
Asked about Mullen's statement, Qureshi said, "it's a clear, clear commitment to Pakistan to respect Pakistan's sovereignty."
However, he added that the US would have to clarify what happened.
"And now if having said that there was an attack later in the night, that means there is some sort of an institutional disconnect on their side, and if so, they will have to sort it out," he said.
Two intelligence officials said that the Wednesday missile strike targeted a compound in South Waziristan used by Taliban militants and Hezb-i-Islami, another group involved in escalating attacks in Afghanistan. One of the officials said an unmanned drone of the type used by the CIA and US forces in Afghanistan was heard in the area.
They said informants reported six people had died and three others were wounded. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
US Embassy spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos declined to comment yesterday, in line with usual US avoidance of discussions of alleged missile strikes.
Washington has long been concerned about Taliban and Al Qaida militants' use of Pakistan's lawless tribal regions near the Afghan border as bases from which to plan attacks on American and Nato forces in Afghanistan.
A spate of alleged missile strikes, as well as the ground assault, signal American impatience with Pakistani progress in clearing out such sanctuaries.
Pakistan insists it is doing all it can, suffering heavy military losses as a result, and that unilateral attacks will simply deepen tribal sympathy for militants.
Earlier this month, Pakistan army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani issued a strong public rebuke to the US, saying Pakistan's territorial integrity "will be defended at all cost" and denying there was any agreement for US forces to operate there. The army also has said Pakistani troops have orders to fire on intruding forces following the September 3 attack.
But some analysts said it was unlikely Pakistan would risk the huge sums it receives in American aid by targeting US soldiers or aircraft.
Pakistan's civilian leaders have backed Kayani's statement.
But Qureshi yesterday asked Pakistanis to avoid issuing "emotional statements" about cross-border attacks.
He said he planned to give a "very honest and frank assessment of what we are gaining and what we are losing by such actions" in upcoming talks with US officials.
"Our stance is that we should cooperate with each other, and such incursions cannot improve the atmosphere, and rather they will deteriorate it, and will be counterproductive," he said.
Qureshi said Pakistan's new president, Asif Ali Zardari, would lead a delegation to the United Nations later this month and will meet American leaders on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters in Kabul that his country will work with Pakistan to address the problem of terrorist sanctuaries in the border tribal areas. Gates said he was encouraged by recent Pakistani military operations which had put pressure on extremists.
And he added that he favoured "a bit of a change of approach" in how US military authorities react when allegations arise over unintended damage from US air attacks.
There are about 33,000 US troops in Afghanistan, and the Pentagon is sending another brigade, numbering about 3,700 soldiers, in January.
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