Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari told two top US envoys that his country needs “unconditional support” in a range of areas to defeat the Al-Qaida and Taleban fighters. The sentiments reflect Pakistani dissatisfaction with American pledges to tack conditions onto billions of dollars in expected aid designed to help Pakistan end militancy within its borders. Zardari met with US special envoy Richard Holbrooke and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff late Monday, according to a press release from the president's office. Holbrooke was to address reporters Tuesday along with the Pakistani foreign minister. Their visit is the first by American officials since President Barack Obama laid out his strategy for reinvigorating the Afghan war effort last month. Lack of understanding “I am deeply, deeply dissatisfied with the degree of knowledge that the United States government and our friend and allies have on this subject,” Holbrooke said. He blamed the shortcoming partly on the intense US intelligence focus on Iraq over the past six years. Another factor, he said, was the high priority placed on gathering intelligence about Al-Qaeda in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. “We need to make sure we know what the appeal of the Taleban is,” Holbrooke said. Holbrooke said that would be critical in enabling the US and its allies to split the hard-core Taliban leaders from less ideologically driven fighters who might be co-opted who he says “well over half” are not committed to the radical ideology. Zardari also urged the use of negotiations to resolve some tensions with the militants. Drone attacks benefit enemy Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said after holding talks with Holbrooke and Mullen that US drone attacks are working to the advantage of the extremists, highlighting differences with Washington. “We did talk about drones and let me be very frank. There's a gap. There's a gap between us and them, and I want to bridge that gap,” Qureshi told a joint news conference. “My view is that they are working to the advantage of the extremists. We agree to disagree on this.” Qureshi added. Holbrooke said that Pakistan and the US found themselves in a similar predicament. “We believe that Pakistan's interest and American's interest run in parallel and that the US and Pakistan face a common strategic threat, a common enemy and a common challenge and therefore a common task,” he said. Mullen said Pakistan's and US interests “overlap significantly.”“Drone attacks are a reality that Pakistanis shall have to live with.”
