US Envoys Accuse Pakistan of ‘Harassment’ as Tensions Rise

As Diplomats Hold Talks, US Launches More Drone Strikes

US and Pakistani diplomats are meeting today amid ever worsening relations between the two nations. The latest issue are new travel restrictions toward US envoys in Pakistan, which some of the US officials termed “harrassment.”

It should perhaps come as no surprise that officials want to keep closer tabs on the US envoys, however. After all, Raymond Davis, a top CIA operative, was operating in the country officially as a “consulate employee” when he murdered two people on the streets of Lahore earlier this year. This led US officials to claim Davis had “diplomatic immunity” for the murders.

The big issues in Pakistan are centering around US operations along the border. The Zardari government has been pressing for an actual written “rules of engagement” for the operations along the border, instead of piecemeal unilateralism.

That seems incredibly unlikely, however, as one of the few explicit demands of the government and the Pakistani military, that the US stop launching unilateral drone strikes, is falling on deaf ears. Today, another four people were killed in a drone strike in North Waziristan.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.