This is with reference to an article entitled Pakistanis bracing for bloody year of terrorism by Simon Cameron-Moore of Reuters, which was published in The Jakarta Post on March 2. U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney was quoted as having said during his visit to Pakistan that General Pervez Musharraf, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, should ""stop al-Qaeda rebuilding in Pakistani tribal lands and stem the flow of Taliban fighters going to Afghanistan for a spring offensive against NATO and Afghan troops"".
The article presents an exaggerated and one-sided story by the Western media, which does not reflect the official positions of the governments of Pakistan and the U.S.. I would, therefore, like to take this opportunity to clarify the official positions of the two countries so as to put the record straight and remove some of the doubts, which might have arisen in the minds of readers of the Post after the publication of the article.
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney visited Islamabad on Feb. 26 and met with President General Pervez Musharraf. The two leaders held in-depth consultations, which covered the ambit of bilateral relations, cooperation on counter terrorism and the situation along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Cheney, while appreciating Pakistan's pivotal role in the fight against terrorism, reiterated that his country attached great importance to strengthen relations with Pakistan in various fields.
In fact, we have to view the U.S. vice president's visit to Pakistan in its broader and proper perspective, which was, indeed, not at all reflected in the above article, nor the many other U.S. media reports published in that time frame.
The visit was part of a regular exchange between the leaders of the two countries. In response to U.S. concerns and apprehensions of the regrouping of al-Qaeda in the tribal areas and Taliban spring offensive, President General Pervez Musharraf reiterated Pakistan's commitment to fight against extremism and terrorism, particularly against al-Qaeda, Taliban militancy and Talibanization in the tribal areas.
He elaborated, saying that most of the Taliban's activities originated from Afghanistan. In this backdrop, it was the collective responsibility of Pakistan, Afghanistan, U.S. forces and NATO to make a concerted effort to curb the scourge of terrorism and militant activities inside Afghanistan.
The New York Times published an article by David Sanger on the day when Cheney visited Pakistan, exaggerating and giving credence to some media reports that the vice president was sent to Pakistan to deliver a ""tough message"" and speculated that the U.S. Congress could cut aid to Pakistan if al-Qaeda and the Taliban were not handled more effectively.
Some media reports even suggested that U.S. forces might take action in Pakistani territory. All such reports are factually incorrect. The fact of the matter is that high-ranking U.S. officials denied publicly that the purpose of Cheney's visit was to deliver a warning or threat.
MAJOR GENERAL (ret.) ALI BAZ
Ambassador
Pakistan Embassy
Jakarta
