Pak has taken initial steps on anti-India groups: US Defence Secy nominee

Mark Esper said he would advocate for the Department of Defense to maintain the right set of tools and authorities to maintain decision space and flexibility in America’s policy approach

U S Defence Secretary nominee Mark Esper has said Pakistan had taken initial and promising steps against anti-Indian groups, adding that he would use all possible tools to promote a change in Islamabad’s strategic approach to the region.

Esper said the president’s South Asia Strategy recognises Pakistan as a key partner in advancing US interests in the region, including developing a political settlement in Afghanistan, defeating the Al-Qaeda and the ISIS-K, providing logistical access and enhancing regional stability.

“We have seen Pakistan take some constructive steps on Afghan reconciliation. Pakistan has also taken initial, promising steps against anti-Indian groups, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, which threaten regional stability,” Esper told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

“It is difficult to assess whether the security assistance suspension itself has driven these constructive actions, or whether progress on Afghan reconciliation and the escalation following the Pulwama terrorist attack have also influenced Pakistan’s calculations,” Esper noted in a written response to questions submitted ahead of his confirmation hearing.

Esper said he would advocate for the Department of Defense to maintain the right set of tools and authorities to maintain decision space and flexibility in America’s policy approach, in order to maintain a “bridge back” for Pakistan. “If confirmed, I would aim to make use of all of the tools at our disposal to promote a change in Pakistan’s strategic approach to the region,” he said…

Will JeM’s Azhar be designated as global terrorist? UNSC to decide today

The proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, UK and the US on February 27

The fate of the proposal to designate Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed’s chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN Security Council will be known in less than 24 hours when the deadline to raise objections to the bid expires.

The proposal to designate Masood Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, UK and the US on February 27.It was under the no-objection period and Committee members had a period of 10 working days to raise any objections to the proposal.  The no-objection period deadline ends 3 pm Wednesday (12:30am IST). The Committee makes its decisions by consensus of its members. All eyes are on China, which has in the past blocked India’s bids to get Azhar listed as a UN-designated global terrorist.

According to the listing rules of the Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee, if no objection is received by the end of the no-objection period, the decision will be deemed adopted, meaning that Azhar will become a UN-designated global terrorist. The proposal is the fourth such bid at the UN in the last 10 years to list Azhar as a global terrorist.

Read Full Story: India Pakistan Conflicts

Pak responds to US, says ISI's 'links' with terrorists not same as support

After US' Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the ISI has links to terrorists, Pak attempted to defend itself by claiming that having links with such groups was not the same as supporting them

Pakistan's military establishment on Thursday attempted to draw a distinction between its Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency "having links" with militant organisations and "supporting" such outfits, the Pakistan daily Dawn reported.

In a wide-ranging conference that saw the country's powerful military establishment discuss security issues, including internal security, civil-military relations, and relations with India, Afghanistan, and the US, the director general of the Inter-Services Public Relations, Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor, hit out against allegations that the ISI has tied with militant organisations.

"Having links is different from supporting. Name any intelligence agency which does not have links. Links can be positive, and he [US Defence Secretary James Mattis] did not say there was support, so the narrative [against Pakistan's army and intelligence agencies] that I talked about is relevant here as well. We should not be a part of it. We have our own narrative," Ghafoor said, according to Dawn.

ALSO READ: Economic benefits for Pak from India if it ends terror safe haven: Mattis

Ghafoor's attempt at differentiating "links" from "support" came even as the country's civilian establishment, stung by remarks from US officials, sought to defend the ISI.

According to agency reports that cited Dawn, the Pakistani Foreign Office on Thursday refuted as "baseless" the remarks of a top US general who said the ISI has connections with terrorist groups.

"The US government and army cannot make Pakistan a scapegoat for its failures in Afghanistan," Foreign Office Spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said....read more