WASHINGTON: US Defence Secretary Robert Gates assured Islamabad on Saturday that Washington was 'very sensitive' to Pakistan’s sovereignty and had no intention of sending American troops inside the country.

A transcript released in Washington by the Pentagon quoted Secretary Gates as telling the Pakistanis that while the US was eager to help Pakistan fight the extremists, it had no desire to impose its will on them.

'We are very sensitive to Pakistan's sovereignty and eager to be helpful, but only as the Pakistanis want us to be helpful,' he said.

Gates also praised Pakistan's current offensive against the militants in Swat and said that it reflected a realization in Islamabad that the Taliban were an 'existential threat' to their country.

'I think the fact that they have taken the kind of action, with the size of forces they have in the western part of the country, demonstrates that they understand that there is a more immediate threat to the country,' he said.

Gates said the United States had unveiled a new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, with new leadership, new resources, and a new sense of urgency.

'I am optimistic that we will gain momentum over the next year, but it will require hard work,' he added.

In his opening remarks at the 'Shangri-La Dialogue' Asia security summit, Gates said terrorist groups rooted in training camps along the Afghan-Pakistan border have international reach, even to the Asia-Pacific region.

'I know some in Asia have concluded that Afghanistan does not represent a strategic threat to their countries, owing in part to Afghanistan’s geographic location,' he said. 'But the threat from failed or failing states is international in scope, whether in the security, economic or ideological realm.'
 
The secretary cited examples of terrorist attacks in Southeast Asia, and said some were inspired and supported by terrorist groups operating along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
 
'Failure in a place like Afghanistan would have international reverberations, and, undoubtedly, many of them would be felt in this part of the world,' Gates said.

Gates cited the US administration’s strategy to surge troops and civilian aid into Afghanistan and to take on the threat on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border in a unified effort.

But, he said, Afghanistan needs more aid to build needed infrastructure, funding to expand the Afghan security forces, and experts to help rebuild the country’s health care, agricultural and education systems.

'The challenge in Afghanistan is so complex, and so untraditional, that it can only be met by all of us working in concert,' Gates said.

'All must contribute what they can to a cause that demands the full attention of the international community.'