Claims and counter claims

Pakistan has rubbished the claims of a news report in The New York Times ( July 29) which stated that the CIA recently confronted the ISI claiming that some members of the latter organisation had very clear militant links. The Nation quotes the Pakistani PM as having said: “...we will not allow that, because the ISI is directly working under the prime minister,” while speaking on the popular PBS programme, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. The Nation reports that the PM gave a clean chit once again to the ISI during his conversation with the Manchester press. The report says, “rejecting Afghan and Indian allegations, he said that ISI is a disciplined organisation and a national asset responsible for the security of the country...”

The News (August 1) reports “Pakistan on Friday denied a newspaper report that its intelligence service helped plan a bombing of India’s embassy in Kabul that killed at least 41 people.” It quotes Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesman who dubbed the report as ‘total rubbish’. Meanwhile The News (July 31) reports that US President George W. Bush also expressed his concerns over ISI’s functioning and role. These views were expressed by Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, defence minister who was also present at the meeting between Bush and Gilani. The report says, “President Bush also asked who is controlling the ISI,” the minister said, indicating that Bush was probably aware of the fiasco created by the failed attempt by the Ministry of Interior to take control of the ISI through a notification...”

Gilani disappoints

The News (August 1) says that PM Yousuf Raza Gilani could not make much of an impression during his address at the Council for Foreign Relations in Washington, claiming that “during the Question-Answer session, his performance as a leader, as an advocate of Pakistan and as prime minister was disappointing for the select audience of about 300 people.” The report makes the point that a lot of former diplomats, South Asia specialists from prominent think-tanks and media personalities were present and they expected some substantive responses from the PM on issues related to terrorism, but he failed to do so. “But they were disappointed when Prime Minister Gilani told them that the Americans know Pakistan better than him and that ‘America can do any thing it wants’”, says the report.

tridivesh.singh@expressindia.com