Pakistan Officials: US Should Stop Blaming Us for Afghan Violence

Urges US to Focus on Militants Operating Inside Afghanistan

Pakistani military officials today blasted the US over its focus on the Haqqani Network and accusations of Pakistani government ties to them, saying that it was time for the Obama Administration to stop blaming Pakistan for its problems in occupied Afghanistan.

“Whenever big attacks in Kabul or elsewhere in Afghanistan take place this blame game starts,” one official noted. Indeed, the US has repeatedly dismissed claims of responsibility by Taliban groups inside Afghanistan for recent attacks to blame the Haqqanis.

Instead, officials said, the US should focus on the militants operating inside Afghanistan, noting that many attacks inside Pakistan lately are coming from across the border in Afghanistan.

The Obama Administration’s repeated allegations against Pakistan seemed initially to be aimed at justification of the CIA drone strikes against Pakistani territory. Recent comments suggest it is becoming part of the ongoing US condemnation of Pakistan that has been a common aspect of the US war in Afghanistan.

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.