Lawmakers laud Panetta's Pakistan stance
8 Jun 2012 7:00 AM IST
American lawmakers have lauded US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta for finally acknowledging that his country is at war within the boundaries of the nominal US ally, Pakistan.
"I think it's helpful for us to understand and develop policies based on reality,' Dana Rohrabacher, Congressman from New York and one of the harshest critic of Pakistan was quoted as saying by The Hill.
Panetta, in New Delhi, had said that the US was fighting a war in the federally administered tribal areas [FATA] of Pakistan.
'I think it's part of the theatre of war. It's a place where the enemy seeks sanctuary,' Senator Graham Lindsey told The Hill, the newspaper of the Capitol Hill.
'The realism of the situation is that there are the elements of the Pakistani military, specifically the ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence], that are supporting the Haqqani network that is killing Americans,' Senator John McCain said.
'Whether you call that being at war or not, that's up to you. I don't view it as being at war, but I certainly view it as a situation which is not acceptable,' the Senator said.
The comments of these lawmakers were reflective of the growing frustration against Pakistan in the US.
In recent weeks not only several legislations have been tabled in the Congress to cut US aid to Pakistan, but also key Congressional committees have recommended suspension of American aid to Pakistan.
Last week, a Senate committee slashed funding by USD33 million in retaliation for a lengthy prison sentence against a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA track down bin Laden. Meanwhile, an official report said the US government is not doing enough to effectively monitor the progress of steps taken by Pakistan to check smuggling of ingredients of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to Afghanistan, which have been significant cause of fatalities among American troops there.
The Government Accountability Office [GAO], in a report released, recommended that the Secretary of State direct the US Embassy in Pakistan to enhance its counter-IED performance measures to cover the full range of US assisted efforts.
According to the report 'State Should Enhance Its Performance Measures for Assessing Efforts in Pakistan to Counter Improvised Explosive Devices', about 80 per cent of the IEDs contain homemade explosives, primarily calcium ammonium nitrate [CAN] fertiliser smuggled from Pakistan.
'US officials recognize the threat posed by the smuggling of CAN and other IED precursors from Pakistan into Afghanistan, and State and other agencies are assisting Pakistan's government to counter this threat,' it said.
According to the Department of Defense, about 16,500 IEDs were detonated or discovered being used against US forces in Afghanistan in 2011.
"I think it's helpful for us to understand and develop policies based on reality,' Dana Rohrabacher, Congressman from New York and one of the harshest critic of Pakistan was quoted as saying by The Hill.
Panetta, in New Delhi, had said that the US was fighting a war in the federally administered tribal areas [FATA] of Pakistan.
'I think it's part of the theatre of war. It's a place where the enemy seeks sanctuary,' Senator Graham Lindsey told The Hill, the newspaper of the Capitol Hill.
'The realism of the situation is that there are the elements of the Pakistani military, specifically the ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence], that are supporting the Haqqani network that is killing Americans,' Senator John McCain said.
'Whether you call that being at war or not, that's up to you. I don't view it as being at war, but I certainly view it as a situation which is not acceptable,' the Senator said.
The comments of these lawmakers were reflective of the growing frustration against Pakistan in the US.
In recent weeks not only several legislations have been tabled in the Congress to cut US aid to Pakistan, but also key Congressional committees have recommended suspension of American aid to Pakistan.
Last week, a Senate committee slashed funding by USD33 million in retaliation for a lengthy prison sentence against a Pakistani doctor who helped the CIA track down bin Laden. Meanwhile, an official report said the US government is not doing enough to effectively monitor the progress of steps taken by Pakistan to check smuggling of ingredients of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to Afghanistan, which have been significant cause of fatalities among American troops there.
The Government Accountability Office [GAO], in a report released, recommended that the Secretary of State direct the US Embassy in Pakistan to enhance its counter-IED performance measures to cover the full range of US assisted efforts.
According to the report 'State Should Enhance Its Performance Measures for Assessing Efforts in Pakistan to Counter Improvised Explosive Devices', about 80 per cent of the IEDs contain homemade explosives, primarily calcium ammonium nitrate [CAN] fertiliser smuggled from Pakistan.
'US officials recognize the threat posed by the smuggling of CAN and other IED precursors from Pakistan into Afghanistan, and State and other agencies are assisting Pakistan's government to counter this threat,' it said.
According to the Department of Defense, about 16,500 IEDs were detonated or discovered being used against US forces in Afghanistan in 2011.
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