WASHINGTON, Oct 24: As the US-led military campaign in Afghanistan continued on Wednesday, the Pentagon admitted that the Taliban were proving to be “tenacious warriors” and was surprised at how doggedly they were holding on to power despite the inevitability of what was coming to them.

Briefing reporters, Rear Admiral John Stufflebeem, deputy operations director at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said despite the harsh environment encountered in Afghanistan, the US was determined to keep the campaign going till the Taliban regime was brought down.

Secretary of State Colin Powell also reiterated the US objective of ending the Taliban regime, saying it had been given a chance to surrender Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda fighters but had chosen to align itself with terrorists. He said the campaign would have to be a long one and many-dimensional.

Testifying before the international relations committee of the House of Representatives on Wednesday afternoon, Mr Powell denied suggestions from a legislator that Pakistan might try to dictate the composition of a post-Taliban government in Kabul.

Pointing out that Pakistan had more than a passing interest in any new government because of its proximity to Afghanistan and the two million Afghan refugees it hosted, the secretary said he had gathered the “clear impression” in talks with Gen Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad that Pakistan wanted all the Afghan people to be represented. Gen Musharraf realized that Pakistan could not do it (influence the formation of a government in Kabul) the way it had done before.