'Status quo in Pak on terror safe haven not to bring peace in
Afghan'United Nations, Jan 20 (PTI) The US has said that thestatus quo regarding continued terror safe havens in Pakistanis not acceptable and insisted that Islamabad join its effortsto bring a resolution to the conflict.
US Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan was speakingat a ministerial meeting of the Security Council at the UNheadquarters in Afghanistan.
"We seek to work cohesively and effectively withPakistan, but cannot be successful if the status quo, onewhere terrorist organisations are given sanctuary inside thecountry's borders, is allowed to continue," Sullivan told themeeting.
"Stability and prosperity in Afghanistan will benefitPakistan as well, since it will enable a return of refugeesand remove the ability of ISIS and other terror groups tooperate against Pakistan from outside the country," he said.
"This is why Pakistan should join our efforts to bring aresolution to the conflict, also as spelled out in our SouthAsia strategy," Sullivan said.
Pakistan, he said, has suffered greatly from the effectsof terrorism, and thus the country can and should be anintegral partner in its shared efforts to achieve peace andstability within the region.
Sullivan rued that the international community has thusfar fallen short in providing that kind of unified support tothe Afghanistan government.
"We have even seen certain countries pursuecounterproductive strategies that provide support to theTaliban in the name of countering ISIS. This approach ismisguided, or worse, pernicious," he said.
"We can – and must – fight ISIS in Afghanistan, whileensuring the Taliban is forced to the negotiating table.
Working closely with our Afghan partners, we have madesignificant progress against ISIS in eastern Afghanistan,"Sullivan said.
"Together, we have maintained persistent pressure onISIS, significantly reducing its territory and eliminatingone-third of its fighters. Supporting the Taliban only servesto prolong the conflict and foster an unstable and insecureenvironment, one that ISIS exploits to threaten Afghanistanand the broader region," the top American diplomat said.
"Ultimately, to defeat ISIS in Afghanistan – and preventthe group's spread across the region – each country at thistable must be aligned in the strategy, and in their commitmentto follow-through. Ineffective strategies that enableinsurgent groups must cease – instead, they need to jointogether and provide unwavering support for the Afghangovernment," he said. PTI LKJAJR.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.