Pakistan sacrificed greatly in war on terror: Gen Mattis

The United States on Thursday said Pakistan was an important regional partner and continued Washington support for Islamabad was necessary to maintain military-to-military relationship on solid footing.

This was stated by Commander US Central Command General James Mattis while testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington.

James told the panel that Pakistan had sacrificed greatly in the war on terror.

He said the US had vested interests in Pakistan’s sustainability as a nation and despite challenges in the US-Pakistan relationship, it was an important regional partner that had sacrificed greatly in the war on terror.

“They must play a constructive role if Afghanistan is to achieve long-term stability.

The political and security environment in Pakistan is impacted by terrorist attacks and ethno-sectarianism and a civilian government with tenuous control in parts of the country, radicalisation of segments of the population, overstretched military, strained relationships with neighbors, and dealing with frequent natural disasters,” he said.

Mattis said the Pak-US relationship had improved steadily since the GLOC reopened in July 2012.

“In December, we held our first high-level bilateral Defence Consultative Group in more than 18 months. We resumed strategic-level talks and committed to implement a framework for defence cooperation that promotes peace and stability within the region, based on areas of converging interests and principles of mutual respect and transparency.”

“Subsequently, we have held operational-level talks, including through the recent Defence Resourcing Conference and Military Consultative Committee, which focused on synchronisation of our efforts to build Pakistan’s capabilities to achieve our common objectives,” Mattis added.

He said continued support for Foreign Military Financing, International Military Education and Training, and the Coalition Support Fund would provide the necessary tools to keep the military-to-military relationship on a solid footing.

The general said the conclusion of a tripartite US-Pakistan-Afghanistan agreement would facilitate better coordination and complementary operations on both sides of the border.

He acknowledged that the Pakistan Army had gradually started taking control of the Tribal Areas in one of the most difficult terrains along the Afghan border.