Pakistani officials said in January that Islamabad had decided to outlaw the militant group and that a formal announcement would come "within weeks". PHOTO: REUTERS
A formal announcement on outlawing the Haqqani militant network it still under consideration, Pakistan's ambassador to the United States said on Tuesday.
Pakistani officials said in January that Islamabad had decided to outlaw the militant group and that a formal announcement would come "within weeks".
Read: Revealed: Govt decides to ban Haqqani Network, JuD
"These are the kind of issues that are in the works, I would say," Jalil Abbas Jilani said at a Washington media roundtable organised by the Christian Science Monitor newspaper, when asked on a timeline for a formal announcement on the subject.
US Secretary of State John Kerry had urged Pakistan in January to fight groups that threaten Afghan, Indian and US interests. US officials have blamed high-profile attacks in Afghanistan on the Haqqani network, which allegedly operates from Pakistan's border areas.
Jilani referred to remarks in November by US Lieutenant General Joseph Anderson, then commander of international forces in Afghanistan, that Pakistani military action in the North Waziristan region had disrupted the group's efforts. Jilani said the operations had succeeded in clearing almost 90 per cent of the militant infested North Waziristan and Pakistan was confident of clearing the remaining area.
The ambassador's comments come after the head of Afghanistan's power-sharing government last week backed a tentative push to begin peace talks with Taliban insurgents and said the effort would "begin in coming days."
Slower withdrawal from Afghanistan to benefit Pakistan
Jilani told reporters that as US troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan's eastern border, they had seen increased militant activity, adding that a slower drawdown “would be viewed very positively in Pakistan.”
The ambassador added that Pakistan has had to depute more soldiers on its Western border, boosting numbers from 145,000 to nearly 177,000 in a bid to control cross-border militancy. This has meant fewer troops were available for carrying out an offensive in North Waziristan.
Jilani said the Pakistani government is considering hosting a regional conference on tackling radical influences as part of US President Obama’s global initiative on countering violent extremism.
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