Concerns on drone strikes to be addressed mutually: State Dept

Spokesperson says disclosure of secret surveillance has raised concerns.

WASHINGTON:

The United States and Pakistan have a strong ongoing dialogue in all areas of their bilateral relationship, including counterterrorism, and will work together to address any concerns, the State Department said.

Secretary of State John Kerry is looking forward to visiting Pakistan and India at an appropriate time, State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki told a daily press briefing. She, however, had no precise travel schedule to announce.

Asked about Islamabad’s objections to US drone strikes, the spokesperson indicated that the two countries would work together to address any concerns. “But we do have a strong, ongoing dialogue with Pakistan regarding all aspects of our bilateral relationship and shared interests, including security and counterterrorism cooperation, and we’ll work together to address any of these concerns.”



She confirmed that four US embassy officials, who flew from Islamabad to Karachi, were detained by airport officials and have since returned to Islamabad. “In terms of the reasoning, we’re still gathering information on what happened here ... I don’t want to over read, and I would encourage none of you to over read, into it while we’re still looking into what the specifics of the events were.”

Asked about the reaction of foreign countries to revelation of US secret surveillance programme, the spokesperson acknowledged the disclosure has raised concerns with some governments.

“We are, of course, aware recent disclosures in the press about classified US intelligence activities have raised concern with some other governments. I would refer to all of them to speak for themselves. And we have ongoing dialogues with allies and partners around the world on a range of issues, including counterterrorism, cyber-security, and privacy concerns, and all of these programs.  And so we’ll continue to discuss those issues and others raised through our diplomatic channels.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15^th, 2013.