'Mullen quoted out of context on NWA operation'

Gen Kayani says decision for operation in North Waziristan will be made by government and political leadership.

ISLAMABAD: Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Kayani said the statement made by US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Admiral Mike Mullen regarding the United States is losing patience with the army’s reluctance to take action in North Waziristan, had been published out of context.

Speaking to the media during the lunch hosted for Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao at the Prime Minister House on Saturday, he said that the decision to launch an operation in North Waziristan can only be made by the government and political leaders, and the army can only launch it after their approval.

Pakistan has long been under pressure by the US to launch a military offensive in North Waziristan. The Foreign Office however has denied being under US pressure to launch an offensive in the northwestern region which the US calls a ‘hub of militant activity’, saying that the operation will be launched only if it is in Pakistan’s ‘interest’.

Last month, The Express Tribune reported that the government had authorised Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani to take a final decision on when and how to launch a military operation in the North Waziristan tribal region.