Salala air raid: US noncommittal on formal apology

Little said that counterterrorism co-operation with Pakistan is on-going.


Huma Imtiaz May 16, 2012

WASHINGTON:


The United States is still noncommittal on a Pakistani demand for a formal apology on the killing of two dozen Pakistani troops in last year’s air raid on border posts in Mohmand Agency.


Acting Assistant Defence Secretary George Little said on Tuesday that Washington expressed deep regret and offered condolences on the killing of Pakistani troops. He was asked at a Pentagon news briefing if the US would offer a formal apology as demanded by Islamabad.

Little, however, hoped that Islamabad would soon lift the blockade of supply routes for thousands of US-led Nato troops fighting a deadly Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan.

“Counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan is ongoing,” he said and added that they were working closely with Pakistan to renew the relationship.

Pentagon spokesperson Captain John Kirby, who was also present at the briefing, said that the US was committed to an ongoing dialogue on a full range of security issues. “We believe we share common interests with Pakistan. The relationship is getting to where it needs to be.” He said that terrorism was a common concern for US and Pakistan. “The same terrorists that come after us, go after the Pakistanis,” he said, saying that terrorists were responsible for the deaths of thousands of Pakistanis.

(Read: Resetting Pakistan-US engagement)

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16th, 2012.

COMMENTS (9)

j. von hettlingen | 11 years ago | Reply

Both parties - Pakistan and the U.S. - should stop this game of chicken. The longer it takes, the less time the U.S. has to finish the endgame in Afghanistan. Unfortunately time is not on the U.S. side and Pakistan knows it.

Jan | 11 years ago | Reply

@Hajira Amir:

It was 12 soldiers that where beheads, two of them had their heads hung in the public square. Those were Taliban militants. No outrage there. Perfectly acceptable behavior. Wonder what the response would have been if NATO had done the same. The really funny thing is Pakistani soldiers fired at Nato helicopters first. Nato has an extremely careful policy and high resolution capability and a command and control structure for engagement. It is especially careful along the borders. The Pakistani soldiers getting killed were the result of inadequate training and discipline on their own part. It's all a big joke and it came to a conclusion as one.

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