The last US administration would stress on Pakistan to act in FATA … but the new administration seems to be more proactive in this regard … so they are going to “act” in FATA to protect “Pakistan”
Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan
** Obama says Pakistani government cares deeply about getting control of situation
- Says Pakistan must be ‘stalwart’ US ally
*WASHINGTON: In a stern warning to Pakistan, US President Barack Obama on Monday asserted that his administration would not allow ‘safe havens’ for Al Qaeda and the Taliban operating with ‘impunity’ in the Tribal Areas bordering Afghanistan.
“My bottom line is that we cannot allow Al Qaeda to operate. We cannot have those safe havens in that region,” said Obama at his first press conference after assuming office.
Concerned: Obama, however, believes that the Pakistani government ‘cares deeply’ about getting the situation under control.
“It’s not acceptable for Pakistan or for us to have folks who, with impunity, will kill innocent men, women and children. And you know, I believe that the new government of Pakistan … cares deeply about getting control of this situation, and we want to be effective partners with them on that issue.” Obama also called on Pakistan to be a stalwart ally in the war on terror.
“You’ve got the Taliban and Al Qaeda operating in the FATA and these border regions between Afghanistan and Pakistan,” said Obama. “What we haven’t seen is the kind of concerted effort to root out those safe havens that would ultimately make our mission successful.”
“We’re going to have to work … to make sure that those safe havens don’t exist,” he said.
The president said one of the goals of Holbrooke was to tell Pakistan that it was “endangered as much as we are by the continuation of those operations”.
