Islamabad, April 7
Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency chief today refused to meet visiting US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke and American military commander Admiral Mike Mullen in an apparent reaction to criticism of his organisation for its alleged links with militants.
ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha refused to meet Holbrooke and Mullen, who had sought a meeting, because of the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff’s recent criticism of the spy agency, Dawn News channel quoted military sources as saying.
Holbrooke and Mullen came to Pakistan from Kabul after meeting President Hamid Karzai and other Afghan leaders.
They were apparently told by Afghan officials that Afghanistan’s problems lay exclusively in Pakistan, media reports said.
Asked if the US was winning or losing the war in Afghanistan, Mullen said since the US was not winning, it could be said that it was losing it.
Holbrooke put it differently, saying neither the US nor the Al-Qaida-Taliban network was winning it.
Meanwhile, the American Special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan said the US had no plans to mediate between India and Pakistan as he stressed on the need for the two neighbours to normalise relations.
“We cannot negotiate between the two countries,” said Holbrooke.
He refused to say anything in response to a question on the US playing a role in resolving the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.
Amid the US’ keenness to see India resume talks with Pakistan, Holbrooke arrived in New Delhi tonight to discuss how the government could help Washington’s strategy aimed at ending terror threats emanating from Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He will meet Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and National Security Adviser M K Narayanan tomorrow.
