Destroy terror 'safe havens' or else US will: CIA tells Pakistan


Washington/Islamabad, Dec 4 (IANS): In a stern warning to Pakistan, the CIA chief has said if Islamabad does not eliminate terrorist "safe havens" in its territory, the US will do "everything" it can to destroy them.

The statement by CIA Director Mike Pompeo came ahead of US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis's visit to Islamabad where he will persuade Pakistan to support the new US strategy on Afghanistan. The Trump administration is sending mixed signals to its estranged ally, Dawn reported.

The CIA director sent a harsh message when asked at the Reagan National Defence Forum in Simi, California, on Saturday how would the Trump administration persuade Pakistan to adhere to its new Afghan strategy.

"Secretary Mattis) will make clear the president's intent. (He) will deliver the message that we would love you to do that. And that the safe haven inside of Pakistan has worked to the detriment of our capacity to do what we needed to do in Afghanistan," the Dawn quoted Pompeo as saying.

He explained how the Trump administration would deal with the situation if Pakistan turned down Washington's request to destroy safe havens. "In the absence of the Pakistanis achieving that, we are going to do everything we can to make sure that that safe haven no longer exists," he said.

Since 2004, the CIA has conducted drone strikes in Fata and recent media reports have suggested that the Trump administration may expand those strikes to cover other areas inside Pakistan.

Pompeo's predecessor, Leon Panetta, also shared with the forum his experience of dealing with Pakistan as the Obama administration's CIA chief.

"Pakistan has always been a problem. It has been a safe haven for terrorists who cross the border and attack in Afghanistan and go back into Pakistan," he said.

"We have made every effort possible, during the time I was there, to convince Pakistan to stop it. But Pakistan, as Mike knows, has this kind of two-wedge approach to dealing with terrorism," he added.

During his Pakistan visit, Mattis is expected to meet Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa.

  

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Comment on this article

  • Don, Mangalore

    Tue, Dec 05 2017

    In their mindset of the average Pakistanis most of them are wondering - Why they have to destroy the safe havens of people fighting for what they see as their 'freedom and rights". They don’t see them as aggressors? They receive millions of dollars in aid from America and India gets nothing, yet poll after poll shows how much they hate the United States, but the majority of Indian people love the US.

    For over a thousand years this mind set of hated towards India as a land of infidels who must be conquered, subjugated and oppressed till they accept their ideologies has not changed. Hence, we went through the horrors of partitioning the country into India and Pakistan, and then further divided it into Pakistan and Bangladesh. As we speak Baluchistan wants to break up and form Pakistan and they want to form their own country. The Indian Muslims who moved to Karachi-Sind are called Muhajirs and not considered as pure Pakistanis, so they are beaten up too.

    These people are narcissists, delusional and believe in conquering and subjugating the world through brute force, and their by product is only dead bodies. They do not see themselves as the problem, they are always the victims and so the fight keeps surfacing and resurfacing around the world and the cycle of violence never ends. Hence, the only way for them to change is to change their mind set, and this I see as almost impossible because of their twisted ideologies that they believe in and that brings us back to the first question all over again.

    DisAgree Agree [4] Reply Report Abuse

  • Desi Admi, Mangalore

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    The terrorist sympathizers , and silent supporters of terrorists in India will be unhappy.

    DisAgree [1] Agree [10] Reply Report Abuse

  • C.T. Thomas, Nandalike

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    They always say Terrorism has NO religion!!!

    DisAgree [3] Agree [2] Reply Report Abuse

  • HENRY MISQUITH, Bahrain

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    US has been declaring pak a safe haven for terrorists since 2007, yet it hasn't stopped the financial aid to them which is used to fund terrorism. Nothing new.

    DisAgree [4] Agree [12] Reply Report Abuse

  • geoffrey, hat hill

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    We are hearing similar threats to North Korea, just bark no bite.

    DisAgree [3] Agree [9] Reply Report Abuse

  • Nithya, Mangalore

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    What has Pak gained till now from terrorism?

    DisAgree Agree [11] Reply Report Abuse

  • Jossy Tauro, Mangalore/Abudhabi

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    America playing double game .They knows that terrorists are in pakistan and pak govt supporting the terrorist .Then still America suplying weapons to PAk. This is just eyewash game with India and our PM dancing on that .America will see their benifits on selling their war products to other country .and make other country fight and struggle with economy

    DisAgree [4] Agree [16] Reply Report Abuse

  • Rajesh, Mulki

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    Looks like the director of CIA forgot that the terrorists also cross on Indian side...

    DisAgree [3] Agree [11] Reply Report Abuse

  • Jossey Saldanha, Mumbai

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    What is the Time Frame ...

    DisAgree [2] Agree [11] Reply Report Abuse

  • Dr Mohan Prabhu, LL.D, QC, Mangalore (Kankanady)/Ottawa, Canada

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    India should send similar message to Pakistan and warn Pakistan that it will send drones (if it has) to destroy terrorist outfits working in Pak territory to infiltrate and conduct terror attacks.

    DisAgree [1] Agree [15] Reply Report Abuse

  • Langoolacharya., Belman/Wash DC.

    Mon, Dec 04 2017

    People,

    Pakistan is playing this double game with US for long time....they don't know Trump well...if Trump gets angry/upset he will not blink to order massive bombing on Pak terror camps and its nuclear installations...

    Pak still continue its old policies when Obama was US President...

    Good for India, if US does what India was supposed to do long back...before 1999, when Pak became nuclear power...

    ...JH...

    DisAgree [2] Agree [20] Reply Report Abuse

  • Langoolacharya., Belman/Wash DC.

    Tue, Dec 05 2017

    Already Hafez Saeed recorded is disagree....waiting for few more...common guys...Surra...

    ...JH...

    DisAgree Agree [3] Reply Report Abuse


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