| Submit your comments on this article |
| India-Pakistan |
| US urges Pakistanis to oppose ceding territory to Taliban |
| 2009-04-23 |
| US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Wednesday that Taliban advances pose "an existential threat" to Pakistan and urged Pakistanis worldwide to oppose a government policy yielding to them. Pakistanis "need to speak out forcefully against a policy that is ceding more and more territory to the [Taliban]," Clinton said, underscoring "the seriousness of the existential threat posed to the state of Pakistan by the continuing [Taliban] advances, now within hours of Islamabad." Clinton testified Wednesday before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where Chairman Howard Berman told her the panel is concerned about extremists gaining momentum in Pakistan. Clinton cautioned that any conditions to the US assistance should encourage and not stop anti-terrorism cooperation from Islamabad. At the same time, she said "we are not interested in putting money into doing what has not worked". "We are creating measures of performance that we will share with Congress so that we can follow whether or not we are getting the positive outcome that we are attempting to achieve," Clinton said. Afghanistan: Clinton told the committee that the core goal of President Barack Obama's anti-terror strategy is to defeat Al Qaeda and prevent its return to Afghanistan. Clinton asserted in response that the international community is working closely together to address the problem of extremism in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Iran: Clinton said stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is an imperative for the US, which is taking a more active role in pursuing that goal. "After years during which the US basically sat on the sidelines, we are now a full partner" in international talks on Iran. Howard Berman asked Clinton how much time it would take to get results on Iran. She did not reply directly but said the administration believes it has set the stage for progress by interacting more directly with allies and by reaching out to Iranian authorities. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 Hillary actually looked stressed at the gravity of the situation, unlike others in the Admin. Let them gather and fill the valley and get them all in one swoop of the Great Eagle. Saves $ on J-Dams. |
| Posted by: Thealing Borgia 122 2009-04-23 12:37 |
| #1 This is a full blown alert. Both Afghanistan and Pakistan or none. |
| Posted by: newc 2009-04-23 00:52 |