Pakistan rejects US allegations of harboring terrorists

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) - Pakistan on Thursday dismissed allegations by the U.S. that Islamabad was providing shelter to the terrorist groups on its soil.

Earlier this week, U.S Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats in a threat assessment report to the Senate repeated Washington’s longtime claim Islamabad provides “safe havens” to militant groups, which carried out attacks in neighboring Afghanistan and India.

Reacting to the allegations, Foreign Ministry spokesman Muhammad Faisal said: “Such controversial statements will be counterproductive and have the potential to adversely affect peace and stability of the region”.

The fresh allegations came a week after a crucial round of Pakistan-sponsored talks between the U.S and the Afghan Taliban in Doha, in an attempt to find a negotiated settlement of the bloody Afghan conflict, which has entered its 18th year.

The two sides have acknowledged that a significant progress has been made in the talks but denied reaching an agreement on ceasefire -- Washington’s key condition.

Taliban, however, have made it clear that until the issue of withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan is agreed upon, progress on ceasefire is “impossible”.

The Afghan government, for its part, complains of being excluded from the process, and warns that any settlement between Washington and the Taliban will require Kabul’s nod.

Pakistan acknowledged in December that it had arranged direct talks between the U.S and the Taliban.