Do not panic over Taliban: Qureshi

KABUL (Agencies) - Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday asked US officials to not panic over Taliban advances in western Pakistan, saying his country would not surrender or capitulate to Taliban.
The Foreign Minister said Pakistan has sent Taliban in its tribal regions a clear signal that they must lay down arms and accept the writ of the Pakistan government.
We mean business, and if we have to use force, we will use force. We will not hesitate, FM Qureshi told an American news agency on the sidelines of meetings with his Afghan and Iranian counterparts. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last week said Pakistan was basically abdicating to the Taliban and the extremists, though she later said Pakistan was beginning to realise the threat Taliban posed.
My response is: 'Please do not panic, Qureshi said in response to Hillarys comments. We have now a common enemy and weve devised a common strategy to deal with the enemy. . .. We will not surrender, we will not capitulate, and we will not abdicate. FM Qureshi said the pact is still in effect. Pakistan wants to concentrate more of its military forces on its western tribal region but that the United States needs to help lower tensions between Pakistan and India - long-time rivals - so that military resources can be moved to the tribal regions, he added.
In recent days, Taliban forces from Swat began entering Buner, a neighbouring district 100km from Islamabad. Officials said most of the insurgents pulled out of Buner on Friday, and Qureshi said militants would not advance closer to Islamabad.
The deal in Swat allowed Taliban officials to implement a strict interpretation of Islamic law. Taliban have burned girls schools and forced women to wear the all-encompassing burqa, much like the Afghan Taliban did in the late 1990s.I will tell you why: Because the overwhelming (majority) of Pakistan are opposed to what they believe in, he said. We will not accept what theyre saying. We want our girls educated. Pakistani women are very talented.'Do not panic over Taliban, Pakistan tells US.