‘A yr after policy, US yet to see Pak’s action against terrorists’

WASHINGTON: The United States has still not seen decisive action by Pakistan against terrorists operating from its soil a year after President Donald Trump’s new South Asia policy was launched, a top official said, insisting that the future of ties was in the hands of Pakistani leaders.

“We have seen some action but we have not seen the decisive steps from Pakistan that could demonstrate commitment, ensuring their territory cannot be used by the Taliban, the Haqqani Network and other groups that were so violent and bring instability in the region,” said Henry S Ensher, deputy assistant secretary of state for South Asia, at a symposium on US-Pakistan at Wilson Center, a leading American think tank.

Hafiz Saeed, the Lashkar-eTaiba mastermind of the Mumbai terrorists attacks, was released by Pakistan from house arrest in November and regularly addresses rallies and public meetings “with impunity”, Ensher noted and added that he (Saeed) was accompanied at one of these public event in one instance “by a minister of the new government”.

It’s clear that the newly elected Imran Khan government may have earned itself a reset of bilateral ties that had been in a downward spiral, but US expectations from Pakistan remain unchanged and the Trump administration will continue to press Pakistan to align itself with the South Asia strategy.

The United States and Pakistan have agreed to take another shot at putting their ties back on the track during recent high-level meetings between secretary of state Mike Pompeo with Prime Minister Imran Khan and the Pakistani army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa in Islamabad and then with foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi here in Washington earlier this month.

The senior US diplomat’s 30-minute speech was conciliatory and encouraging in tone, urging Pakistan to live up to its potential for one. But it was unwavering in its message: Pakistan’s contribution to Afghanistan peace process and its counter-terrorism actions will be central to relations with the United States.

And, the onus for turning around the ties was on Pakistan — the “future course of our relationship, and indeed the trajectory of Pakistan’s development rest in the hands of Pakistani leaders”.

Pakistan’s policy on terrorism, Ensher said, was key to its ties with India as well. The US encourages the two countries to talk to improve ties, he said, but “the presence of terrorists and militants on Pakistani soil limits the potential for and the likely outcomes of any dialogue and we encourage Pakistan to address these issues”.

In January, he said, Pakistan had pledged to act against LeT fronts Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) and Falah-e-Insaiyat (FIF). But “10 months later, there is no evidence the government has taken over JuD and FIF operations.”