Armitage says drone strikes can stop, as Pasha highlights their utility

KARACHI : Former US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage says, that while Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is condemning drone strikes and is demanding that the US has to stop these attacks, in reality, if Pakistan wants these drone attacks to stop, they can stop.

In an interview given to a foreign news organization Armitage added; that each time the government of Pakistan speaks up about drone strikes and does nothing about it, it incites public opinion in Pakistan, but it doesn't do anything to resolve the issue.

Responding to a question, regarding how continued drone strikes would impact the US-Pakistan relationship, Armitage responded; that while drone strikes incite a very negative public opinion in Pakistan, almost any Pakistani if given the opportunity to come to the United States would “do it in a heartbeat.” – implying that the relationship is very complex.

An Act of War

When asked about the Abbottabad Commission report stating that the raid to kill Osama bin Laden was ‘an act of war’ by the United States, Armitage brushed it aside saying that he didn't care what the report indicated, and that it is not a US report. Adding, that it was not an act of war, and that the US went after and took out a terrorist.

Drone attacks have their utility, but violate national sovereignty

Meanwhile, former DG Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Ahmed Shuja Pasha in his statement to the Abbottabad Commission, admitted the utility of drone strikes but added that they violate Pakistan’s sovereignty.

According to the commission’s reports, Pasha further stated, that there were no written agreements regarding drone strikes, however, there was a political understanding between Pakistan and the United States.

“it was easier to say no to them in the beginning”

According to the report, the Americans had been asked to stop drone strikes because of the civilian casualties they caused; "it was easier to say no to them in the beginning, but 'now it was more difficult' to do so," the former DG has been quoted.

The report further quotes Pasha to have said; "Admittedly the drone attacks had their utility, but they represented a breach of national sovereignty. They were legal according to American law but illegal according to international law."