Pakistan remains firmly committed to standing against the tide of militancy, and winning the war against terror is critical as it is in the countryÂ’s own interest, a spokesman of the Pakistani embassy here said on Thursday. Commenting on an article in a Washington newspaper, the spokesman rejected the assertion that some areas in the tribal region bordering Afghanistan were under the occupation of the Taliban.| Prove it. Pop on over to Swat and get a haircut. We'll wait... |
The spokesman said the assertion that the two Waziristans were under the occupation of the Taliban was mere conjecture because a substantial presence of military and civilian establishments in the area belies the claim. “No doubt that Pakistani troops have suffered casualties, yet militants have also suffered heavy death tolls during the counter-terrorism operations launched by the Pakistan Army.”
Shaheedi said that Pakistan has been fighting terrorism and extremism since before September 11, 2001 and “claims of surrogating for the US are misplaced.” The spokesman said that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal was safe, and “there is no question of their slipping into the hands of extremists as our command and control authority, an apex body headed by the president of Pakistan, stipulates such an institutional arrangement that guarantees the safety and security of our nuclear assets in absolute terms”.