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Fugitive Sirajuddin Haqqani |
WASHINGTON – Stinging U.S. allegations linking Pakistani intelligence to the Haqqani terrorist group have prompted the Pakistani government to launch a damage-control program for its closest ally, China, and others who are friendly, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.
While the Chinese are publicly showing support for their long-time friend and neighbor, regional sources say that the Chinese are being especially cautious in not openly criticizing the United States' claims that the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate is backing the Haqqani terrorist network.
At the same time, Beijing is showing increasing concern that Islamabad is not doing enough against Islamist militants who are training in Pakistan and launching attacks in China.
In recent testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Michael Mullen made the public disclosure of the ISI relationship to the Haqqani terrorist network, which is killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
While the Haqqani network is located in Pakistan in North Waziristan near the Afghanistan border, Haqqani militants cross into Afghanistan to kill U.S. troops, who are the group's main target.
Mullen also said that the U.S. has evidence that Pakistan supported Haqqani in detonating the truck bomb that injured 80 U.S. troops in early September as well as the more recent attack on the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan.
"The Haqqani network," Mullen said, acts as a veritable arm of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Agency. He blamed the Pakistani government for "choosing to use violent extremism as an instrument of policy" and thereby jeopardizing the U.S.-Pakistani strategic relationship.
"They (Pakistani government) may believe that by using these proxies they are hedging their bets, or redressing what they feel is an imbalance of regional power," Mullen added. "But in reality, they have already lost that bet."
In an effort to offset such open criticism by the outgoing U.S. JCS chairman, Pakistan sought to do damage control.
In addition to China, regional sources said Islamabad has dispatched ISI Director-General Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja to Saudi Arabia and sent high level officials to other "friendly" countries.
Chinese Minister for Public Security Meng Jianzhu flew to Islamabad at the same time that Pakistani Chief of the Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Pervez Kayani canceled a trip to London.
Jianzhu then met with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardani and Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik, along with Kayani.
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