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'Pakistan is the epicentre of terrorism'

In his first briefing in 2011 on the United States National Security Strategy Update, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen, while replying to a query, blurted out that Pakistan is the epicenter of terrorism in the world.
 
"I have said it before and I'll say it again, it (Pakistan) is the epicenter of terrorism in the world right now, and it deserves the attention of everybody to do as much as we can to eliminate that threat," Mullen said during an appearance at the Foreign Press Centre in Washington, DC.
 
He argued that "progress in Pakistan is critical in terms of the region," and pointed out that "since I've had this job, I've never talked or wanted to leave the impression that it was about one country or the other, because it's about the region."
 
Thus, he said that there cannot be any progress in Afghanistan without progress in Pakistan and that this meant shutting down the terrorist safe havens in that country.

Reportage: Aziz Haniffa in Washington, DC

'This threat is evolving'

Mullen said, "Obviously the recent assassination, the political challenges that we've seen with MQM (Muttahida Qaumi Movement political party) leaving and returning to the coalition to ensure that that government doesn't fall, I think that the political aspect is something I keep an eye on all the time."
 
But he asserted, "It is absolutely critical that the safe havens in Pakistan get shut down.  We cannot succeed in Afghanistan without that.  I've had many meetings with (Pakistan army chief) General (Ashfaq) Kayani on this subject and he has evolved his military against this threat."
 
"This threat is evolving as well, because it's not just the Haqqani network anymore, or Al Qaida, or TTT [Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or Pakistani Taliban], the Afghan Taliban, or LeT [Lashkar-e-Tayiba], it's all of them working together in ways that two years ago they absolutely did not," he noted.

'That is a call for action'

Mullen said, "One of the things that I spoke to in my remarks was support for this reconciliation process, and that process includes everything, not just the Afghan Taliban, in terms of getting to a point where Afghanistan is peaceful and stable and can take control of its own life and move forward in every respect."
 
Incidentally, Mullen has made several trips to Pakistan since the US launched its war on terror. When asked if he believed Pakistan is doing enough to shut down the terrorist havens within its borders and what excuse Islamabad offers him every time he expresses these concerns, the top military official said, "I don't go into specifics of discussions that I've had, private conversations that I've had."
 
"Strategically, the safe havens have got to go.  When I talk about the region, it isn't just Afghanistan and Pakistan.  We had a question earlier about Iran.  I talk about this with my Russian counterpart. The neighbours in the area include India.  I think we all have a responsibility and we all want to see this resolved as rapidly as possible.  That is a call for action for everybody that's involved in this," he argued.

'The Taliban have lost momentum'

Earlier, in his opening remarks, Mullen claimed that the coalition forces had the Taliban on the run in Afghanistan and painted a picture of impending victory, till he was checked by a question on why he was offering up such a picture when most of the reports pointed to the contrary.
 
He said, "There's no question that the Taliban have lost momentum in parts of the south and in the east, and that the growth and development of Afghan National Security Forces is progressing in a much more organised way at a quicker pace than we had expected
 
Mullen noted, "A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to Kandahar and Helmand Provinces to visit with our troops and see first-hand the good work they and their Afghan partners are doing.  The enemy is being pushed out of population centers; he is being denied sanctuary, he is losing leaders by the score, and his scare tactics are being rejected by local citizens." 

'The enemy is losing'

"While I was not surprised to see this sort of progress in Nawa and Marjah, I will admit to some surprise at seeing it take root around Kandahar, particularly in Arghandab and Zhari where the enemy is not accustomed to losing.  Nevertheless, he is losing and I have every confidence that he will continue to lose so long as coalition and Afghan forces increase their presence and their pressure on his operations and improve their own capacity," he said
 
But when told that he had painted an extremely rosy picture of the success of coalition forces, Mullen quickly backpedaled to say, "If I left you the impression that it was rosy, that's the wrong impression. It is a very difficult fight.  It is a very difficult time in this conflict."
 
He added cautiously, "I am encouraged, but I do not want to understate in any way, shape or form the difficulty of the task.  It clearly continues to be severe."