Pakistan has rebuffed an appeal by visiting US officials not to shut down military intelligence liaison centres in the country, US and Pakistani officials have said.
Pakistan had recently told the United States to reduce its military presence in the country, and also moved to close three military intelligence liaison centres, setting back American efforts to eliminate insurgent sanctuaries in largely lawless areas bordering Afghanistan.
The liaison centres- also known as intelligence fusion cells- are the main conduits for the US to share satellite imagery, target data and other intelligence with Pakistani ground forces conducting operations against militants, including Taliban fighters who slip into Afghanistan to attack US and allied forces.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen visited Islamabad this week in a bid to ease the mistrust deepened by the secret May 2 raid that killed Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.
A senior US official in Washington said that Pakistani officials rebuffed a US request not to close the liaison offices in Peshawar and Quetta that have been used to share intelligence on militants with Pakistani ground forces, The Los Angeles Times reports.
US officials remain hopeful that they can persuade Islamabad to allow the American personnel to re-establish the intelligence-sharing centres, the official added.
Pakistani officials said that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari also said that his government intended to review all aspects of operations by unmanned US drone aircraft.
It was unclear whether Pakistan intended to take dramatic steps to curtail the drone program. Drone attacks have increased substantially during the Obama administration, and serve as one of the main US tools for fighting Al Qaeda and its allies. ANI
Pakistan had recently told the United States to reduce its military presence in the country, and also moved to close three military intelligence liaison centres, setting back American efforts to eliminate insurgent sanctuaries in largely lawless areas bordering Afghanistan.
The liaison centres- also known as intelligence fusion cells- are the main conduits for the US to share satellite imagery, target data and other intelligence with Pakistani ground forces conducting operations against militants, including Taliban fighters who slip into Afghanistan to attack US and allied forces.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen visited Islamabad this week in a bid to ease the mistrust deepened by the secret May 2 raid that killed Al Qaeda chief Osama Bin Laden.
A senior US official in Washington said that Pakistani officials rebuffed a US request not to close the liaison offices in Peshawar and Quetta that have been used to share intelligence on militants with Pakistani ground forces, The Los Angeles Times reports.
US officials remain hopeful that they can persuade Islamabad to allow the American personnel to re-establish the intelligence-sharing centres, the official added.
Pakistani officials said that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari also said that his government intended to review all aspects of operations by unmanned US drone aircraft.
It was unclear whether Pakistan intended to take dramatic steps to curtail the drone program. Drone attacks have increased substantially during the Obama administration, and serve as one of the main US tools for fighting Al Qaeda and its allies. ANI
