US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates describes the offensive as encouraging but says it’s still too early to judge the outcome.

‘I’m obviously encouraged by the Pakistani operations,’ says Mr Gates. ‘We obviously are very supportive of what the Pakistanis are doing. But it’s very early yet.’

At the State Department, spokesman Ian Kelly stresses the point that the United States and Pakistan share a common goal, fighting extremism, but he too avoids appearing too enthusiastic in backing the move.

‘We have a shared goal here, and the shared goal is fighting violent extremism... we have full faith in the government of Pakistan,’ says Mr Kelly.

‘I think that they’ve turned a corner as well in their democratic development, and so we support them in their efforts,’ he adds. ‘One of the major reasons that we are supporting these efforts is to help us reach success in Afghanistan as well.’

Experts appearing on various television shows, however, insist that the US support for the operation is stronger than it appears. They point out to a recent Pentagon announcement that it is rushing in essential military equipment to help Pakistan combat the militants.

‘Washington fears that a public position, even in favour of Pakistan, will hurt the Pakistanis,’ says one such expert. ‘The Pakistanis too do not want this to be seen as a US-backed operation.’

The US media have noted that Pakistan has vowed to target Taliban leaders and deal a killer blow to the extremists as it presses ahead with the offensive.

The United States has long pressed for a military offensive in Waziristan, claiming that it has become an Al Qaeda safe haven. And as the Pakistani army launched the offensive, two top US officials, Centcom chief Gen David Petraeus and Senator John Kerry, visited Islamabad to consult military and civilian leaders.

The US media claim that the two leaders encouraged Pakistan to continue the offensive. But the reports also claim that key differences between the US and Pakistan on how to tackle the insurgency remain unresolved.

The media note that during his meeting with the two US officials, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani emphasised the need to speed up delayed payments of more than $1 billion to support its military and called on the US and Nato to stop infiltration from Afghanistan into Pakistan.

US critics, meanwhile, continue to accuse Pakistan of only targeting those insurgents that threaten its own security while ignoring those who threaten Afghanistan.

American officials also disagree with Pakistan’s claim that the Haqqani network — termed by Gen Stanley McChrystal, the top US commander in Afghanistan, as the second-greatest threat to US forces there – is not in Fata. It mainly operates from Afghanistan.

The media, however, acknowledge that US generals understand why Pakistan is trying to befriend Waziristan militant leaders like Hafiz Gul Bahadur and Maulvi Nazir.

‘Gen Petraeus and Gen McChrystal understand that opening up on other fronts wouldn’t benefit the Pakistan Army,’ says one such report.

‘The American generals believe that Pakistan can afford to ignore the smaller guns — like Hafiz Bahadur and Maulvi Nazir — for the time being.’