MPs ask US Gen to talk to Taliban

ISLAMABAD - David McKiernan, the commander of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, Thursday said the war on terrorism could not be won without Pakistan's support and US-led allied forces were ready to help Islamabad.   

Briefing a group of Parliamentarians here at US Embassy on the war on terror, the NATO Commander commended the role of Pakistan Army in carrying out operations in the restive tribal areas and some parts of NWFP, but desired to improve the intelligence cooperation.    

The NATO Commander's briefing to the parliamentarians also came under fire in Senate when Leader of the House Senator Raza Rabbani stated that the NATO and US Embassy had bypassed the Foreign Office in holding the briefing. Senator Professor Khurshid of Jamaat-I-Islami raised the issue in the Upper House that it was better to consult Foreign Office in arranging the briefing.   

David McKiernan, the commander of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, arrived here on Thursday on a 2-day visit to talk to Pakistani leaders amid the spiralling missile strikes, which have triggered anger and protest across the country.

Pakistani parliamentarians asked the NATO commander to initiate a dialogue with all the militants' groups including Taliban for making a long-lasting peace in the tribal areas of Pakistan and also in Afghanistan.

They also made it clear that the US' missiles attacks on Pakistani soil were provoking the tribal people and resulting in anger across the country. "If these attacks continued then the ultimate goals of the war on terror could not be achieved," the parliamentarians asserted.  

They asked the visiting commander if US was having any solid proof about Al Qaeda or Taliban leaders then they should share the intelligence information with the Pakistani authorities.  

Mr McKiernan was confident that they had accurate intelligence information about their targets, recently hit by missiles, in the tribal areas. He apprised them of the prevailing situation along Pakistan and Afghanistan border regarding war on terror.  

The visit came against the backdrop of protests lodged by Pakistan over the cross-border intrusions by US drones and missile attacks on the tribal areas along the Afghan border.

The US-led NATO forces have recently intensified missile attacks in Pakistan, accusing Pakistan of not doing enough to prevent Taliban militants crossing the border to launch attacks.

Reports said that the U.S. drones had carried out 18 strikes in the tribal regions since August.

The Pakistani Government has condemned the strikes, which also fuelled anti-American sentiments particularly among the Pakistani people.