File Photo: US had said it respected Pakistan’s sovereignty but will continue to target terrorists inside its territory.
In a blunt message to Pakistan, the US has said that the continued existence of terror safe havens in the country and its inability to take action against them affects their bilateral ties including security assistance.
“The US continues to be clear with Pakistan about steps it should take to improve the security environment and deny safe haven to terrorist and extremist groups,” the Pentagon said in its six-monthly report on Afghanistan sent to the Congress on Friday.
“These conversations continue to affect not only US dialogue with Pakistan on security and stability in Afghanistan but also during discussion of other issues in the US-Pakistan bilateral relationship such as security assistance,” the Pentagon said.
US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter has not given a certification that Pakistan has taken action against the Haqqani network. As a result, the Pentagon has withheld USD 300 million in Coalition Support Fund to Pakistan for the current fiscal year ending September 30.
The Pentagon reiterated that Afghanistan-Pakistan border region remained a sanctuary for various terror groups.
Taliban Chief Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in a drone strike in Pakistan two days ago.
“These include the Taliban, al-Qaeda, AQIS, the Haqqani Network, Lashkar-e Taiba, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, IS-Khorasan Province and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan…This sanctuary and these groups remain a security challenge for both countries and pose a threat to regional stability and security,” said the report that ran into more than 100 pages.
According to the report, although al-Qaeda’s core leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region has been degraded, elements continue to seek safe haven on both sides of the border to regenerate and conduct attack planning.
The continued development of an al-Qaeda affiliate in the region — al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) — highlights the dynamic nature of the terrorist and militant landscape in the region, posing risks to the mission and to US interests, it said.
“Pakistan must play a role in reducing the threat from terrorist and militant groups in the region,” it said.
