Gates says Pakistani military cooperation increasing

Visiting Afghanistan, the Defense secretary says he and Karzai have agreed on the need for stepped up collaboration between NATO-led forces and the Pakistani military to eliminate insurgent sanctuaries.

Visiting Afghanistan, the Defense secretary says he and Karzai have agreed on the need for stepped up collaboration between NATO-led forces and the Pakistani military to eliminate insurgent sanctuaries.

Kandahar, Afghanistan — Militants operating out of safe havens in Pakistan remain a major threat to Afghanistan, but cooperation between NATO-led forces and the Pakistani military is increasing, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Friday.

Devastating floods this summer have delayed Pakistan’s military from going after militants in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and North Waziristan on Pakistan’s porous northwestern border.

Afghanistan regularly blames Pakistan for allowing Islamist groups to flourish there, and Afghan President Hamid Karzai describes them as a great threat to his nation’s security.

Before leaving Afghanistan, Gates went south to Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban, to visit U.S. troops. He described the Islamist militants as “a resilient enemy.”

Gates said he and Karzai agreed on the need for stepped up cooperation between NATO-led forces and the Pakistani military to eliminate insurgent sanctuaries.

“Cooperation between the two is increasing and everybody understands that the sanctuaries on the other side of the border are a big problem,” Gates told reporters.

However, Gates said the likelihood of direct U.S. military engagement in Pakistan was “very low.”

“Unfortunately the flooding in Pakistan is probably going to delay any operations by the Pakistani army in North Waziristan for some period of time,” he said.

“But I think the solution here is …cooperation to take care of these targets,” he said.

Almost 150,000 foreign troops are in Afghanistan. President Obama last year ordered 30,000 more troops to the country in a bid to turn the tide against the Taliban-led insurgency.

Violence is at its worst across Afghanistan since the Taliban was ousted by U.S.-led Afghan forces in late 2001, with civilian and military casualties at record levels despite the presence of so many foreign troops.

Gates arrived in Afghanistan on Thursday from Baghdad, where he attended ceremonies to mark the end of U.S. combat operations there after seven years.

“You guys are in the forward foxhole and what makes a difference in this whole campaign is your success here in Kandahar city,” he told the troops.

“Unfortunately there are going to be more tough days ahead and you know that better than anybody,” he said.