US Senator John Kerry, a long-time pro-Pakistan voice on the Capitol Hill, has joined the Obama administration in warning Pakistan over alleged sanctuary for Afghan militants, raising prospects of American recourse to “self-help” options.
The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee raised the question of the “continued danger of a sanctuary war being prosecuted against the forces” in Afghanistan at a hearing on upcoming NATO summit in Chicago.
“I am a veteran of a sanctuary war and I know how insidious it can be, and I personally think that it is unacceptable to have a zone of immunity for acts of war against armed forces and against the collective community that is trying accomplish what it is trying to accomplish,” the Democratic senator said in a statement.
“That means Pakistan has to become more assertive and more cooperative, and we may have to resort to other kinds of self-help depending on what they decide to do,” the influential lawmaker added.
A House of Representatives panel has already moved a resolution to condition economic and military assistance for Pakistan with reopening of supply lines and its performance in support of American efforts in a number of counterterrorism areas in Afghanistan.
Pakistan continues to be a target of criticism and mounting pressure by Congressional leaders as Washington races against time to show some degree of progress towards stability in Afghanistan at the Chicago Summit later this month.
Kerry warns Pakistan of sanctuary implications
