India, Britain and Afghanistan join chorus of discontent

India and Britain came down hard on Pakistan on Thursday in a joint press conference in New Delhi, urging Islamabad to honour its commitment to eradicate terrorism within its borders.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and British Prime Minister David Cameron indicated that they were in agreement that “Pakistan should be as serious in paying attention to terror on the western borders (of Pakistan) as on the eastern borders.”

“No one is in any doubt, least of all the Pakistani government themselves, that there have been and still are terrorist organisations like the LeT (Lashkar-e-Taiba) and others that need to be cracked down on and eliminated,” Cameron said at the joint press conference.

“I sincerely hope that the government of Pakistan will honour its commitment given to us on a number of occasions that Pakistani territory will not be allowed to be used for terrorism,” Singh continued.

“It is not acceptable, as I have said, for there to be within Pakistan the existence of terror groups that cause terrorism both within Pakistan and also outside Pakistan,” Cameron added.

The comments come just a day after Cameron criticised Pakistan for allegedly helping ‘support terrorism elsewhere.’ On Wednesday, Cameron said that Pakistan must not look “two ways” in Afghanistan by publicly working to stabilse the country while secretly funding insurgents.

Karzai leaps into the fray

Cameron and Singh’s comments were not the only criticism Pakistan had to face on Thursday.

Pakistani officials on Thursday had to counter yet another harsh statement from a foreign leader, as Afghan President Hamid Karzai had earlier urged his western allies to destroy militant sanctuaries in Pakistan’s tribal areas.

At a news conference in Islamabad, Foreign Office spokesperson Abdul Basit said Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan had been asked to seek a clarification of Karzai’s statement.

President Karzai had earlier said that the war against terrorism should not be fought in Afghanistan’s villages, but in those sanctuaries and training centres that operated outside of the war-ravaged country. He did not mention Pakistan by name.

Foreign Office spokesperson Abdul Basit said Afghan government officials had based their remarks on thousands of secret US military files leaked earlier this week by website WikiLeaks and that the files amounted to raw intelligence and disinformation. “It is a matter of disinformation so you cannot draw right conclusions from misguided reports,” Basit said.

Backlash to Cameron’s initial criticism

Karzai’s comment came just a day after British Prime Minister David Cameron’s initial criticism of Pakistan during his visit to India, in an interview with BBC radio.

“It’s unacceptable for anything to happen within Pakistan that’s about supporting terrorism elsewhere,” Cameron had said. “And it’s well documented that this had been the case in the past,” he continued.

Cameron’s comments have placed him firmly in the middle of a diplomatic row, as Pakistan’s ambassador to Britain on Thursday accused Cameron of “damaging the prospects of regional peace” while the foreign ministry in Islamabad reminded him of the nation’s commitment and sacrifices in the fight against terror.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi added that: “We take serious exception to any suggestion that falsifies facts and puts the entire onus of terrorism on Pakistan. This is totally unacceptable”.

In response to Pakistan, Cameron on Thursday sought to clarify his remarks, which were seized on by the Indian media as endorsing New Delhi’s view that the Inter-Services Intelligence agency covertly funds insurgents in India and Afghanistan.

“I don’t think it’s overshadowed anything. I think it’s important to speak frankly and clearly about these issues,” Cameron told reporters travelling with him.

Meanwhile, in London, Pakistani High Commissioner Wajid Shamsul Hasan voiced his government’s deep disappointment over Cameron’s comments.

“He seems to be more reliant on information based on intelligence leaks, despite it lacking credibility or corroborating proof,” said Hasan, writing to The Guardian newspaper.

In Islamabad, Basit added:  “Pakistan and the United Kingdom have a robust and comprehensive partnership, including on counter-terrorism.” AGENCIES

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Published in The Express Tribune, July 30^th, 2010.