Pakistan remained edgy on Monday over the recent slew of accusations and veiled threats by the U.S., with Chief of Army Staff Ashfaq Parvez Kayani cancelling a visit to the U.K. and stocks falling by 3 per cent, even as tensions with Afghanistan increased over cross-border incursions.
While the “special'' conference of the corps commanders had been apparently convened on Sunday in view of Gen. Kayani's scheduled departure for London later in the day, his decision to cancel that visit has triggered another round of speculation as the civil and military leadership seeks to evolve a calibrated response to U.S. demands for action against the Haqqani network and the possibility of surgical strikes against terrorist havens within the country.
Despite considerable amount of “cage-rattling” and warnings from various politicians to the U.S. of a fierce response if it attempted a surgical strike inside Pakistan, there is a parallel view that seeks to cool down tempers and avoid as far as possible a direct confrontation.
Envoy meets Bashir
Amid the volatile debate within the country over the accusations regarding Pakistan's “institutional links with terrorists,” U.S. Ambassador Cameron Munter called on Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir soon after returning from New York.
It was described as a follow-up to the meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar last Monday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The Foreign Office said both sides agreed on “dialogue and deeper engagement” at all levels.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani has called an all-party meeting on Thursday to discuss bilateral relations with the U.S. and evolve a national consensus. The security establishment is also expected to be present at the meeting to brief the political leadership of the country on an issue that has predominantly remained an exclusive domain of the men in uniform.
Cross-border incursions
While the U.S.-Pakistan stand-off agitated the nation — with the Karachi Stock Exchange registering a 3 per cent slump — the frequent cross-border incursions along the Durand Line have opened a new fault line between Kabul and Islamabad just as the two countries were trying to bury a bitter past.
The Afghan Defence Ministry on Sunday accused the Pakistan Army of firing more than 300 artillery rounds and rockets into Kunar and Nooristan provinces over the past five days.
