In his first major public speech since the Jan. 27 shootings, Cameron Munter spoke of a “renewal” in Pakistani-US relations and noted America’s many humanitarian programs in the country.
“It remains vital to us both to see progress in Pakistan and the region, in the interest of peace, stability and prosperity of Pakistan and its neighbors,” Munter told academics and former diplomats at a think tank in the capital, Islamabad.
He later said he wanted to concentrate on “opportunities in the future, not of problems of the past.” The audience peppered him with questions and comments that revealed how deep suspicion of US motives remains here.
One man requested that Munter tell US officials to stop American missile strikes on militant targets on the Pakistan side of the Afghan border. Some questioned whether the US would ever treat Pakistan on par with its archrival India. Others suggested that the US tries to micromanage Pakistani affairs.
Munter welcomed the criticism, saying he’d rather Pakistanis be blunt and honest than stay silent, according to The Associated Press.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Lt.-Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha is visiting the United States on Monday, where he is expected to meet with the head of the CIA in attempt to patch up an alliance considered crucial to winning the war against Al-Qaeda and the Afghan Taleban.
A Pakistani intelligence official confirmed Gen. Pasha’s trip and said the spy chief had arrived in America.
Pasha’s visit comes at a time when US-Pakistan joint intelligence operations have been disrupted over a series of disputes, particularly the case of Raymond Davis, a CIA contractor who shot dead two Pakistanis in the eastern city of Lahore in January.
Purpose of the visit is to normalize relations between two intelligence agencies which face few problems in the aftermath of Davis’ arrest and his release, an said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
