Biden says partnership with Pakistan is vital
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden delivered a bold message of support for key anti-terror ally Pakistan during a trip to Islamabad Wednesday, telling the country that America is "not the enemy of Islam".
Biden spoke following talks with President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani that were expected to raise America’s wish to see Pakistan do more to eradicate al-Qaeda and Taliban living on its remote border.
In a joint press conference with Gilani, Biden said the discussions had been "extremely useful" before he turned to address anti-American sentiment, fanned by the ongoing war in Afghanistan and a covert U.S. drone campaign on the border.
"There are… some sections in Pakistani society and elsewhere that suggest America disrespects Islam and its followers," Biden told reporters at the prime minister’s residence.
"We are not the enemies of Islam and we embrace those who practice that great religion in all our country," he added.
The United States wants Pakistan’s army to do more to combat extremists on its border, including by launching a ground offensive in the district of North Waziristan, where it says key Taliban leaders reside.
The army has stalled on a ground operation, saying its troops are overstretched.
Biden delivered his message before leaving for a key meeting with army chief General Ashfaq Kayani.
"A close partnership between Pakistan and its people is in the vital self interest of the United States of American and, I would argue… in the vital self interest of Pakistan as well," Biden said.
"My hope is, God willing, if I’m able to stand here next year with you, that we’re able to point to greater progress and greater resolve and greater prosperity for your people and mine," Biden said, concluding his speech.
Gilani applauded "very fruitful discussions" with the U.S. vice president.
Saddened by murder
Commenting on the assassination of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer last week at the hands of his own bodyguard for supporting changes in a controversial blasphemy law, Biden said the United States was "saddened by cold-blooded murder of a decent, brave man".
"The governor was killed simply because he was a voice of tolerance and understanding," he said.
"As you know all too well … societies that tolerate such actions end up being consumed by those actions."
Earlier, Biden called Amna Taseer, the widow of the slain governor, to express his condolences on behalf of the president and the American people.
In addition to economic, political and security crises, Pakistan is beset by a growing religious extremism among the poor and middle class, which often translates into suspicion towards the United States and the West in general.
Militant groups have exploited grievances, exacerbated by U.S. drone attacks in the west of the country, to build support.
"We know that there are those — I am not talking about leadership, I am talking about the public discourse — that in America’s fight against al-Qaeda, we’ve imposed a war upon Pakistan," Biden said.
Biden arrived hours after a U.S. drone strike in Pakistan’s North Waziristan tribal district struck a compound near the base of a Taliban commander, killing three suspected foreign militants, according to security officials.
The United States does not officially confirm the controversial drone attacks, which take place with Islamabad’s tacit approval and which US officials say has severely weakened al-Qaeda’s leadership.
In 2010 the campaign doubled missile attacks in the tribal area with around 100 drone strikes killing more than 650 people, according to an AFP tally.
Aid donations
U.S. officials have sought to smooth an often rocky relationship with Islamabad with promises of huge non-military aid donations on top of its military assistance, to help the nuclear nation develop its fragile economy.
U.S. officials have announced they will fast-track part of a $7.5 billion five-year aid package to help the country recover from devastating floods last year.
The government in part blames the diversion of national resources to fight militancy for its raft of economic woes, which include a huge fiscal deficit and crippling fuel and energy shortages.
Zardari is also due to visit the United States this week, officials in Islamabad have said, in the wake of a major domestic political crisis that has further weakened his fragile coalition government.
Pakistan won U.S. praise after it mounted an offensive against homegrown Taliban extremists in the South Waziristan region in late 2009.
But a White House report to Congress in October stated bluntly that Pakistan had not confronted Afghanistan’s Taliban, in what experts see as a bid by Islamabad to preserve influence over its northern neighbor.
Biden arrived in Pakistan from Kabul, where he met President Hamid Karzai for talks that included discussing the presence of U.S. troops serving in Afghanistan as part of an international force of some 140,000.