Pak needs reassurance over India threat: Pentagon

As Pakistan combats the terrorist threat along the Af-Pak border by moving about one lakh troops from its India border, a top Pentagon official told United States lawmakers on Thursday that Washington needs to reassure Islamabad that it is not exposing itself to increased risk along its eastern border.

"Although extremist attacks have led to the repositioning of substantial Pakistani forces, Pakistan's strategic concerns about India remain preeminent," Michele Flournoy, the Under Secretary for Policy in the Department of Defense, told lawmakers.

"We must continue to reassure Pakistan that as it combats the terrorist threat, it is not exposing itself to increased risk along its eastern border," he told a Congressional hearing.

A day earlier, Pentagon had informed the US Congress that the Pakistan army has shifted about one lakh troops from the Indian border to its western border; thus acknowledging the fact that terrorism and internal insurgency poses more threat to the country.

"More than 100,000 PAKMIL troops were moved from the eastern border with India. This unprecedented deployment and thinning of the lines against India indicates that Islamabad has acknowledged its domestic insurgent threat. Pakistan has suffered attacks from terrorists in response to its successful operations," the Pentagon said in its latest periodic report to the Congress on Afghanistan.

Testifying before the House Armed Services Committee, Flournoy said Pakistan is also wary about the increasing Indo-US relationship.

"A final hurdle, frankly, relates to the legacy of mistrust between the United States and Pakistan. Past US sanctions, past Pakistani concerns about the growing US-India relationship, its scepticism about US staying power in the region have made it a weary partner," she said.

"Similarly, reports of Pakistan's tolerance and support for some violent extremist groups have created skepticism on the US side," she said, adding that this is a partnership that is absolutely vital to US national interests. "But it is also complex. And the need for candid dialogue and mutual reassurance remains very strong, and I believe we have made substantial progress in this regard over the last year," she said.

Observing that Pakistan's traditional defence posture is and always has been geared to conventional military conflict with India and not a counterinsurgency, she said consequently, prior to Pakistani Taliban's audacious foray into the Swat valley approximately one year ago, Pakistani leadership was reluctant to acknowledge such groups as serious threats to their state security.

"In the past, the Pakistan approach to dealing with violent extremists relied primarily on limited and often inconclusive military operations, as well as tenuous cease-fire agreements, all of which collapsed immediately. Pakistan's approach to military networks changed when these militants began directing their violence inward, against the Pakistani state, the people and the society," Flournoy said.

Responding to a question, Lt. Gen John Paxton (US Marines), Director for Operations, Joint Chief of Staff, said India too has moved troops from the Pakistan border.

"Yes, sir, I think probably on the intelligence side, we probably want to answer that in closed session," he said. "We have made overtures, obviously, that trying to diminish the feeling of a threat there will have mutual benefits and a lessening of tensions within the region," Paxton said.

"And I think we have good partners and allies on both sides of the India-Pakistan equation, sir," he told the lawmakers.