Stop ‘high profile’ militants from entering Pakistan: Mush

[Awesome]

http://www.pakistanlink.com/Headlines/Jan07/19/09.htm

ISLAMABAD: President General Pervez Musharraf on Thursday urged the Afghan government to take measures to stop “high profile” militants from crossing the border into Pakistan.

Chairing the 9th meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) here, Musharraf said that no country had contributed more in the fight against terrorism than Pakistan, an official statement said. He reiterated Pakistan’s resolve to combat terrorism and extremism and warned of strong punitive action against any illegal and terrorist activity from its soil.

Musharraf said the government had taken effective political and administrative measures in FATA, adding that these steps would bring peace and socio-economic development in the region and would lead to effective monitoring of the Pak-Afghan border. He, however, stressed the need for strict implementation of plans to check cross-border movement of militants and eliminate foreign terrorists.

The NSC meeting, attended by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and other members except Maulana Fazlur Rehman, leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, reviewed important developments at the national and international scene, particularly the post peace agreement situation in FATA and reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in the earthquake-affected areas.

Aziz said the government would extend all facilities including financial assistance for the development of FATA and the earthquake affected areas. In his presentation on the situation in FATA, NWFP Governor Ali Muhammad Jan Orakzai said that socio-economic activity was progressing in the area and several measures had been taken to control law and order.

NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani said that foreign militants were resisting the peace agreement and were trying to sabotage the process in South Waziristan. Musharraf praised the ERRA’s efforts for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the quake-affected areas and said that Pakistan’s successful strategy to deal with a natural calamity of such a large magnitude was being quoted as a textbook example across the world.

 

[Neo]

ISLAMABAD: President General Pervez Musharraf on Thursday urged the Afghan government to take measures to stop “high profile” militants from crossing the border into Pakistan.

I can shout louder right?
Good move Mushy!

 

[Awesome]

It's about time. Why are they immune from doing nothing and we have to bear the brunt of doing everything?

 

[Neo]

rejects blame for Taliban despite help

Enlarge PhotoBy Reuters
Friday February 2, 07:05 PM
By Robert Birsel

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan (Reuters) - President Pervez Musharraf said on Friday Pakistan could not be blamed for the Taliban resurgence in Afghanistan, although some troops had turned a blind eye to help for insurgents crossing the border.

Musharraf dismissed speculation that fugitive Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar was in Pakistan and said suggestions Pakistan's main Inter-Services Intelligence agency or military were helping the Taliban were "preposterous".

A growing perception that Pakistan was responsible for a resurgent Taliban was "absolutely wrong", Musharraf said.

"Pakistan is contributing the most but we are being blamed. We cannot accept this anymore," he told a news conference.

Violence surged in Afghanistan last year to its most intense since U.S.-led forces ousted the Taliban in 2001. Afghanistan and its allies say the Taliban's strength is partly a result of safe havens in Pakistan.

Pressure has been mounting on Pakistan to tackle Taliban sanctuaries on its side of the lawless border.

A U.S. bill, endorsed by the House of Representatives and sent to the Senate for consideration, calls for an end to U.S. military aid to Pakistan if it fails to stop the Taliban operating from its territory.

The Bush administration opposes the provision in the bill linking aid to action against the Taliban and says Pakistan cooperates with U.S. counter-terrorism efforts.

Musharraf said there had been some instances of cross-border support for the Taliban but the insurgency was an Afghan problem.

"I know there are problems," he said, referring to instances of thinly manned border posts being confronted by large groups of well-armed and motivated militants intent on crossing.

"I know that at some posts a blind eye was being turned ... (but) we are taking all kinds of action to the people implementing our orders on the ground at the checkposts."

"The problem lies in Afghanistan and the solution lies in Afghanistan. We have to stop the support network from here," he said.

"NOT APPEASING"

Musharraf also said Pakistan refused to take sole responsibility for security along the 2,500-km frontier, and defended a Pakistani plan to fence and lay mines on parts of it to stop infiltration to Afghanistan.

"It is a joint responsibility of Pakistan, Afghanistan, U.S. forces and NATO ... We refuse to take complete responsibility for stopping every action on the border," he said.

He said a total of 35 km of fencing would be put up in the first phase of the fortification plan.

Musharraf also said he was "500 percent sure" Taliban leader Omar was in Afghanistan. He said no Taliban leaders were in Pakistan although a top commander, Mullah Dadullah, had been there and authorities had tried three times to catch him.

Musharraf also defended a peace deal signed in a tribal region on the border in September that was meant to end attacks on Pakistani forces, in which about 700 troops have been killed, and raids into Afghanistan.

The U.S. military said attacks in some areas had increased severalfold after the deal but Musharraf said he had figures from NATO's Afghan force showing less violence.

He said the deal was aimed at empowering tribal leaders and marginalising militants and, while not a complete success, it could serve as a model for other areas. "It's not a total success, it has its failures, but we must not scrap it," he said.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/070202/137/6bqtb.html