Obamas speech puts more pressure on Pak

US President Barack Obamas landmark speech on Afghanistan and his decision to send 30,000 additional troops to fight the Taliban received a cautious welcome from Pakistan, but experts said he was also signalling that Washington would put more pressure on its south Asian ally.
We welcome President Obamas commitment to the region and to Pakistans interests, said Husain Haqqani, Pakistans ambassador to Washington, on Tuesday night. We have to consult with all stake holders in Islamabad before we come out with a formal response. Talat Masood, a retired general and security analyst in Islamabad, said: The message to Pakistan could not have been stronger. Clearly, President Obama has told Pakistan: You have got to shape up and re-orient your policy.
Mr Obama said in his Afghanistan policy speech on Tuesday: We will strengthen Pakistans capacity to target those groups that threaten our countries, and have made it clear that we cannot tolerate a safe-haven for terrorists whose location is known and whose intentions are clear.
Tensions between US and Pakistani officials have been high in the past month mainly because of Washingtons view that Islamabad has failed to aggressively target safe havens along its border with Afghanistan, thought to be used by Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.
Pakistan this year began an offensive against the Talibans known hideouts in the countrys northern Swat valley and more recently in the south Waziristan region near the Afghan border.
Pakistani officials said earlier that the US had gone ahead with finalising its Afghan policy without adequate consultations with Pakistan, adding that such lack of consultation is in no ones interest.
Prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani warned last week that a US military surge in Afghanistan could further destabilise his country by forcing Taliban militants to cross over in to neighbouring Pakistan.
Some in the Pakistani government also believe that the US and Nato forces will not be able to win a final victory against the Taliban, which enjoys popular support among many ordinary Afghans, without the need for dialogue with the hard-liners.(FT)