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The envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, who met External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, National Security Adviser M K Narayanan and Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon in New Delhi, said he had sought the Indian leadership's assessment of the situation in the region and briefed it about his visit to the two countries.
"For the first time in 60 years, your country, Pakistan and the US all face an enemy that poses direct threats to our leaderships, our capitals and our people," Holbrooke told reporters after his meetings.
He said this common threat comes from developments in Swat where Taliban virtually call the shots now.
"I do want to underscore the fact that what happened in Swat demonstrates a key point and that is that India, US and Pakistan all have a common threat now," he said.
Swat, located just 160 km from Islamabad, is virtually being run by the Taliban who have given a tough time to Pakistani military and kidnapped several people, including foreigners for release of their cadres.
Pakistani military has resorted to all kinds of force, including artillery and helicopter gunships, against the Taliban entrenched in the tribal areas but without much success.
Though the NWFP government and the local Taliban signed a peace deal last May, it collapsed within months.
Security experts believe the peace pact was used by the militants to regroup.
Speaking about his visit to Pakistan last week, Holbrooke said "When I was in the tribal areas and, I did not go to Swat but I was in Peshawar. I talked to people from Swat... They were frankly quite terrified."
He said Swat has "really, deeply affected the people of Pakistan not just in Peshawar, but in Lahore and in Islamabad".
On the 10-day ceasefire announced by the Taliban in Swat to facilitate implementation of Islamic Shariah laws there, Holbrooke said he did not have much information about it and would be talking to the US Ambassador in Islamabad regarding this.
He said he had ‘reported’ to Indian government on his trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan and exchanged views.
"I carried no messages or guidance. I just wanted to hear the views of India to a wide range of issues," said Holbrooke while expressing happiness at being back in India, a country he loved since his childhood.
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Taliban is part of pakistan army.They are fooling the Americans to get money and latetest weapons. Pakistan will play all sorts of games until they are thrtened with force.That is the only language they understand. Imediatly after 9/11 USA threatened the pakistanis that they will be bombed to stone age.Sudenly Pakistan agreed for everything.Nato and the russians joined together and start a bombing compaign.PLEASE DONOT WAITE FOR AONTHERr 9/11. Neutralise their atomic weapons. Distroy the ISI. Rember during the 1980s Mrs thatcher and President Regan bombed Col.Gadaffi with good effect.
India is being dragged into a problem created by the Pakis and US, unnecessarily. As usual, the US are doing things by halves and making things worse. It is for the US and the Pakis to go after the Taliban in a war to the finish, disregarding the collateral damage, which is inescapable in a war and which all should be prepared for.
Taliban,AlQaeda and LeT are threat only to India and why US claims so is ridiculous.For Pakistan these groups are major source of income and to remain in news so that they can blackmail and depict their vanity of having nukes.Its purely US-Pak product/creation.Pakistan's very existence depends on these terrorists and their activities then how can they be a threat to it !Other than INdia they are certainly threat to Afghanistan which enjoys close relations with India.USA is tens of thousand miles away and how and why they feel Taliban(now a days they talk less about Al-Qaeda because of Pak interests)a threatIf US has some suspicious elements from Pak they should be deported and no visa or srict visa policy will also help.The best way is to stop with pampering,giving any kind of aid and ask world community for the same.US has to rectify its own greedy policy of strategic achievements.The real threat/danger is Pakistan.Taliban could've been controlled long before if Pak wanted to.
Taliban operating out of Pakistan's Swat region pose a "common" threat to India and the US, besides the host country, America's special envoy Richard Holbrooke suggested in New Delhi on Monday. He was exactly right. But who will contain the tide? I boldly can say that India never come forward to assist US to eradicate these terrorists with the fear of minority votes until the present goernment is there..
America and England are the two nations who are real threats to India.The international bankers through their puppet (OUR PM--from world bank) is killing our nation by taking loans from IMF and world bank.India must stay away from US and UK and should follow its independent policy.Globalization is stupid thing ,Indians are brainwashed like American throuh controlled media of illuminati.
You breed the snake, feed it, house it, train it and then it bites you. So now you want to kill it. But you cant cause you've feed it, housed it and trained it and it knows everything you know.The Taleban is essentially the political arm of the ISI. The ISI need to be destroyed not dismantled.
I partly agree with this,except for that, i don't think pak army is really fighting with talibans. Mr. Hollbrook is completely on the wrong side of the game. His theory will be another very costly foriegn policy blunder. If US govt is going to formulate their policies, based on this theory, it would be risking their security and India's as well. Despite presence of NATO army for the past 8 years, how did talibans became stronger, instead of becoming weeker. This it self shows their strong financial base from middle east, narcotic smugglers and local support from pak army. talibans are creation of pak army to fight USSR and India, supported by USA previuosly. Pak leaders have made the deal only to suvive their chairs. USA must stop funding completely to paksitan
Pakistan action against Taliban is just a show to fool USA. Sorr to say these words are written here will be proof. Pakistan requires Taliban for having a say in Afganisthan and forment trouble in Kashmir. Without Taliban ISI will become powerless.Any country which Pakistan has countinued to fool is USA and for short term gains USA is falling in the trap.