‘Pak safe havens biggest challenge in Afghan war’

Last Updated: Monday, October 03, 2011, 21:22

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Tags: Pakistan, Afghan war, Mike Mullen

‘Pak safe havens biggest challenge in Afghan war’

Washington: A top US military adviser to both Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush says the biggest challenge in the Afghanistan war is the safe havens that the insurgents enjoy in Pakistan.

"It's not just about one country, it's about both Afghanistan and Pakistan, and part of the biggest challenge is the safe havens that the insurgents enjoy in Pakistan," Admiral Michael Mullen, who retired as chairman of the joint chiefs Friday after four years told CNN Sunday.

Asking Pakistan's spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Pakistani military to sever "direct and indirect" strategic ties with the dreaded Haqqani network to destabilise Afghanistan, he said: "In Haqqani is the most virulent insurgent group, terrorist group in Pakistan and a great supporter of Al Qaeda."

"We're losing Afghan civilians, Afghan soldiers, and we're losing American soldiers because of the Haqqani network. And the link between the Pakistan military and specifically the ISI, their intelligence agency, is very well-known. And I have argued for the need to sever this link," Mullen said.

"That also has to do with getting control of that safe haven. That's not a new discussion. It's not a new issue," he said. "It's long lasting. But the intensity of the recent events and the strategic support that the ISI and the Pak military both give to the Haqqani network directly and indirectly, is what I was focused on."

Asked if his going public was a product of great frustration with the Pakistanis, Mullen said: "As a military leader and as somebody who feels responsible for the 2.2 million men and women in uniform, the effort or actions on the part of the Haqqani network to literally kill my people is something I just can't tolerate anymore."

IANS UAE, Sri Lanka discuss judicial cooperation Abu Dhabi: The UAE and Sri Lanka Monday began a two-day discussion to boost judicial cooperation.

Judge Abdul Rahman Murad Al Balushi, director of International Cooperation Department at the justice ministry, said the first round of talks on the subject was held in 2009.

He said the discussion during the ongoing second round of talks will focus on extradition and criminal matters.

IANS

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First Published: Monday, October 03, 2011, 21:22

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buttjee - pakistan
It is very difficult for an arrogant Super Power to accept its failure particularly when for ten long years it has fought against the bare footed and ill equipped rag tags of Afghanistan without any success.. The frustration grows out of all proportion when this Super power realizes that they have already used all types of high tech weapons in their arsenal and have also expended whatever they had in their kitty. The natural fall back position for face saving is to put the blame on Pakistan and start talking about the so called safe heavens.