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US willing to share drone technology with Pakistan: Gates
Today's "Bad Idea of the Day"...[Dawn] US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has discussed the possibility of sharing its UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) drone technology with Pakistan. "These unmanned vehicles are useful and we have a budget for them," said Gates in an exclusive interview with a private television channel on Thursday. During the interview, Gates further confirmed that American security agencies Xe Services, formerly known as Blackwater, and DynCorp have been operating in Pakistan; however he said that these agencies are operating in their individual capacity under a regulatory framework. To a question about concerns in the Pakistani parliament over the activities of Xe and DynCorp, the Defense Secretary said that the US government would comply if the parliament of Pakistan votes for a ban on the functioning of these agencies. Gates said that the US is determined to be a long-time ally of Pakistan and has no intentions of 'taking over Pakistan.' "The US enjoys an excellent relationship with the Pakistani government and the army," said Gates, congratulating the Pakistani government for its successful military operations against militants. Terming the Haqqani group and Lashkar-e-Tayyaba as the most dangerous militant groups, Gates said that terrorism is the common enemy among Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and the United States. He further denied having any military relationship with India. Posted by: Fred 2010-01-22 |
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