Saifullah Sani
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ISLAMABAD: US Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter has said if asked, the US was ready to help Pakistan investigate the memo controversy.
Speaking on Geo News’ Capital Talk hosted by Hamid Mir, the US ambassador said the memo issue was Pakistan’s internal matter and must be resolved inside Pakistan. He said the US was waiting to see what had happened following an inquiry conducted by the Pakistani authorities into Ambassador Husain Haqqani’s alleged involvement in the memogate.
“We need to find out from this inquiry what this memo is and what it really meant. I can only say that I had not seen the memo until it was published,” Munter said. Munter also denied the Sunday Times report that he had met PTI chief Imran Khan in the presence of ISI chief Ahmed Shjua Pasha. “I have met Imran Khan and I have met the ISI chief, but both these meetings were held separately,” Munter said.
He denied the impression that Imran Khan was anti-American. “He (Imran Khan) supports democracy. He wants a transparent system and economic development. Now the question is if he has some workable formula of improving the country’s condition, then we are with him.”
When quizzed about US drone attacks inside Pakistan, the US ambassador said he couldn’t go into sensitive details but all this was being done for the common cause of rooting out terrorism from Pakistan and Afghanistan. He said the US strongly believed that the war against terrorism could not be successful without Pakistan’s help.
When asked if he provided proof about his allegations during a radio interview that the attackers of the US embassy in Kabul had connections with Pakistani secret agencies, Munter said he had said the Pakistan-based Haqqani network trained the attackers.
Munter said a majority of Pakistanis were not against the US and Pak-US relations had improved after the visit of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, adding that CIA and ISI were cooperating with each other. Munter admitted that there had been difficulties in relations after the Raymond Davis and Abbottabad incidents and statements from both sides, which had created a lot of tension.
Munter admitted that there were differences between Pakistan and India over the handling of the terror war. He said the US was willing to hold talks for a secure future for Afghanistan, but at the same time couldn’t let those roam freely who attacked its forces. “We are following the policy of ‘fight, talk and move forward’.”
He said the Pak-Afghan border area was a very difficult place, which was why it was hard to completely control the movement of militants there. He said the US was forcefully carrying out “Operation Knife Edge” to pursue the militants near the border areas.
The US ambassador said his country supported the TAPI gas pipeline and Pakistan’s agreement with Uzbekistan to resolve its energy crisis. However, in Iran’s case, Munter said the US thinks Pakistan was going for an unreliable supplier.
When asked if India was also going for deals with Iran, Munter said Pakistan should also negotiate such deals with India. “When we say we want to see India successful, it doesn’t mean that Pakistan will pay its cost. We want to see both Pakistan and India prosperous,” Munter said.
About the Bonn Conference on Afghanistan, Munter said it could not provide a permanent solution to the problem but was part of efforts for Afghanistan’s future. Former foreign secretary Riaz Khokhar, who also participated in the talk show, said the real issue was that the memo existed and it had been sent by someone. He said a three-member committee comprising Supreme Court judges should hold an inquiry into the matter.
He endorsed Munter’s view that a majority of Pakistanis did not hate the US, saying that the difference of opinion existed on policy matters that both the countries adopted towards each other. However, he said, the US image in Pakistan could improve if it stopped the drone strikes, adding that the US would have to reconsider its drone policy if it wanted to continue its alliance with Pakistan.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=10469&Cat=13
Speaking on Geo News’ Capital Talk hosted by Hamid Mir, the US ambassador said the memo issue was Pakistan’s internal matter and must be resolved inside Pakistan. He said the US was waiting to see what had happened following an inquiry conducted by the Pakistani authorities into Ambassador Husain Haqqani’s alleged involvement in the memogate.
“We need to find out from this inquiry what this memo is and what it really meant. I can only say that I had not seen the memo until it was published,” Munter said. Munter also denied the Sunday Times report that he had met PTI chief Imran Khan in the presence of ISI chief Ahmed Shjua Pasha. “I have met Imran Khan and I have met the ISI chief, but both these meetings were held separately,” Munter said.
He denied the impression that Imran Khan was anti-American. “He (Imran Khan) supports democracy. He wants a transparent system and economic development. Now the question is if he has some workable formula of improving the country’s condition, then we are with him.”
When quizzed about US drone attacks inside Pakistan, the US ambassador said he couldn’t go into sensitive details but all this was being done for the common cause of rooting out terrorism from Pakistan and Afghanistan. He said the US strongly believed that the war against terrorism could not be successful without Pakistan’s help.
When asked if he provided proof about his allegations during a radio interview that the attackers of the US embassy in Kabul had connections with Pakistani secret agencies, Munter said he had said the Pakistan-based Haqqani network trained the attackers.
Munter said a majority of Pakistanis were not against the US and Pak-US relations had improved after the visit of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, adding that CIA and ISI were cooperating with each other. Munter admitted that there had been difficulties in relations after the Raymond Davis and Abbottabad incidents and statements from both sides, which had created a lot of tension.
Munter admitted that there were differences between Pakistan and India over the handling of the terror war. He said the US was willing to hold talks for a secure future for Afghanistan, but at the same time couldn’t let those roam freely who attacked its forces. “We are following the policy of ‘fight, talk and move forward’.”
He said the Pak-Afghan border area was a very difficult place, which was why it was hard to completely control the movement of militants there. He said the US was forcefully carrying out “Operation Knife Edge” to pursue the militants near the border areas.
The US ambassador said his country supported the TAPI gas pipeline and Pakistan’s agreement with Uzbekistan to resolve its energy crisis. However, in Iran’s case, Munter said the US thinks Pakistan was going for an unreliable supplier.
When asked if India was also going for deals with Iran, Munter said Pakistan should also negotiate such deals with India. “When we say we want to see India successful, it doesn’t mean that Pakistan will pay its cost. We want to see both Pakistan and India prosperous,” Munter said.
About the Bonn Conference on Afghanistan, Munter said it could not provide a permanent solution to the problem but was part of efforts for Afghanistan’s future. Former foreign secretary Riaz Khokhar, who also participated in the talk show, said the real issue was that the memo existed and it had been sent by someone. He said a three-member committee comprising Supreme Court judges should hold an inquiry into the matter.
He endorsed Munter’s view that a majority of Pakistanis did not hate the US, saying that the difference of opinion existed on policy matters that both the countries adopted towards each other. However, he said, the US image in Pakistan could improve if it stopped the drone strikes, adding that the US would have to reconsider its drone policy if it wanted to continue its alliance with Pakistan.
http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=10469&Cat=13
