News
Monday, October 04, 2010
Mullen expresses confidence in US-Pak relations* Says no major impact seen from closing of supply route
WASHINGTON: Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, on Sunday said the US and Pakistan could resolve the issues that led to the closure of a major supply route for US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, and he has not yet seen any major impact from the closing.
The US military has analysed the situation to determine what the effects would be if the route was closed for a longer period, the navy admiral told reporters between speaking engagements this week in Tucson, Arizona, but officials are hoping such a closure can be averted, the Pentagon said.
“I believe we will figure a way to work our way through this,” Mullen said, emphasising Pakistan’s importance as a strategic partner. Islamabad closed the crossing at Torkham Gate along its northwestern border with Afghanistan after US helicopters unknowingly killed several Pakistani border guards on September 30, the Pentagon news report said.
Pakistan’s top diplomat in Washington on Sunday said the supply route was temporarily shut due to security fears in the wake of this week’s events. Ambassador Hussain Haqqani said other routes remain open for NATO supplies and hoped for early re-opening of the Torkham Gate. Mullen, who has visited Pakistan 20 times since taking the top military post in 2007, said the US had been working to rebuild Pakistani trust. How that is resolved, he said, will go a long way toward shaping the future US-Pakistan relationship.
“We left them in a dark hole from about 1990 to 2002, and they don’t trust us. We are trying to rebuild that trust. And it’s basically coming, but you don’t rebuild it overnight,” Mullen said, adding that this effort comes at a time of enormous challenges for Pakistan, whose border with Afghanistan, he claimed, is the epicentre of terrorism.
This summer’s unprecedented monsoon flooding – that submerged one fifth of the country’s land and affected around 21 million people – has compounded Pakistan’s struggles.
“They have just been devastated,” said Mullen, who toured flood-stricken areas of Pakistan last month with army chief Gen Ashfaq Kayani. app
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk