ISLAMABAD, 6 October 2003 — US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage yesterday praised Pakistan’s “tremendous effort” in launching a major operation against Taleban and Al-Qaeda militants in the troubled border zone with Afghanistan.
“I do note with great satisfaction the statements of President Musharraf reported in the Pakistani press this very morning where he talked about the threat to Pakistan being extremists in their midst,” the top US diplomat told reporters during his brief visit to Kabul before heading to Islamabad.
“And I also note with great approval the tremendous effort in the last couple of days of the Pakistani forces against Taleban and Al-Qaeda which resulted in the deaths of some and the capture of others and I just hope that’s a trend that’s going to continue,” he said.
“We all recognize that the federally administered tribal areas are troubled and that some who wish to cause harm here in Afghanistan seem to come across the border there,” Armitage said.
Armitage said he would be discussing the operation with President Pervez Musharraf today. “Clearly when I have the honor of speaking with President Musharraf tomorrow I’ll be speaking on the full range of our issues and I obviously want to talk with him about his recent activities against Al-Qaeda and Taleban; after all these are our enemies too, they’re not just enemies of Afghanistan or enemies of President Musharraf,” he said.
Afghanistan also praised Pakistan’s efforts against militants.
“We will be obviously expressing our pleasure with Pakistan’s latest attempts to make sure the borders are secure and their attempts to destroy terrorist camps,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Omar Samad told AFP ahead of Armitage’s meetings with President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah.
“We’ve seen signs recently that Pakistan is doing more to apprehend and disrupt the terrorist activities on its soil in the tribal areas and we hope it will continue.”
Samad said the US-Afghan-Pakistan tripartite commission would be meeting in a few days to discuss security issues.
Armitage is accompanied by Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca and will return to Islamabad for talks today. “They were supposed to reach here this (Sunday) morning and (by) now they will be in Kabul,” a senior government official told AFP.
“Armitage and Rocca arrived in Islamabad early yesterday,” an official at US Embassy confirmed. “They are expected to hold talks in Pakistan tomorrow,” the US diplomat said.
“Tomorrow they will return (to Pakistan) and meet President Pervez Musharraf and the defense secretary,” the official said. The most important part of the visit is talks on Pakistan-US relations and regional situation with reference to talks between India and Pakistan,” the official said.
Besides, Armitage and Rocca will discuss with Pakistani leadership cooperation in war on terrorism, reconstruction issues in Afghanistan and the situation in Iraq, where the United States is keenly looking for troop contributions by Pakistan and other countries for peacekeeping operations, the official said. The two senior US officials would also hold talks with top Defense Ministry officials on bilateral defense cooperation in Islamabad.
Armitage was originally due in Islamabad on Thursday but the visit was postponed for two days due to him being ill.
