US-Pakistan relationship treading a thin line, very little done to strength the cord – Part 2

Panetta’s statement has spurred a huge hatred in Pakistan. Pakistani people have not been fond of the coalition with the US in war on terror for it has brought nothing but economic inequality and the haunting culture of suicide attacks that has claimed thousands of lives only in last half a decade.

Pakistan ambassador to the US, Sherry Rehman has dismissed Panetta’s statement as a non-serious attitude toward the prevailing situation.

“This kind of public messaging from a senior member of the U.S. administration is taken very seriously in Pakistan, and reduces the space for narrowing our bilateral differences at a critical time in the negotiations,” she said yesterday in an interview. “It adds an unhelpful twist to the process and leaves little oxygen for those of us seeking to break a stalemate.”

US claims that Pakistan is sheltering three of the US’ most wanted terrorists in the country. Allegedly al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, and Lashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed are hiding in the western parts of the country. Moreover, they claim that Pakistan is aiding and training terrorist groups, namely Haqqani group is on the top of the list.

However, certain Pakistani officials have claimed in anonymity that there are not government relations with the terrorist groups. They have further stated that the US forces do not share any knowledge of the residences and/or bases of these culprits.

Their claim that if the US has intel on these groups, why haven’t they been eradicated yet, holds some logic. However, the US government is playing the mule to not to bend at any cost.

Last month, the US president refused to meet Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in Chicago. That action hurt the relationship the most.

To date both parties have been rifling statement after statement that have aggravated relationship and very little to nothing has been done in solving the conflicts, much less extend hands for good relationship.

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Posted by Usman Khalid on Jun 9 2012. Filed under Pakistan, Politics. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.