WASHINGTON: There is daily and constant communication between the US-led forces in Afghanistan and the Pakistani military as Pakistan continues its operation against militants in North Waziristan, says the US Defence Department.

At a regular news briefing at the Pentagon, Press Secretary Admiral John Kirby said that the Zarb-i-Azb offensive was also “a testament to the degree to which Pakistan, the United States and Afghanistan have a shared threat and a shared challenge to deal with.”

So far, the US administration has been very cautious in commenting on the operation which began last week amidst fears that a strong US interest in the offensive could prove counter-productive.

Officials say US not involved in Zarb-i-Azb offensive

At recent briefings, officials at the White House and the State Department made it clear that this was a “Pakistan-led and Pakistan-executed” operation and the United States was not involved in it, directly or indirectly.

Admiral Kirby also emphasised this point but went a step ahead of his colleagues at other government departments in acknowledging that US-led forces in Afghanistan had maintained a close coordination with the Pakistani forces.

“There is daily, constant communication between the ISAF forces under General Joseph Dunford and the Pakistani counterparts on various levels,” said Admiral Kirby when asked if the United States was coordinating with Pakistan to ensure that the militants fleeing North Waziristan did not enter Afghanistan. “I won’t get into details about the specifics on this particular operation, but communication with the Pakistani military continues, and must continue.”

The admiral was more careful when asked to predict if Zarb-i-Azb would be successful. “The operation just began. And we’re not going to certainly rush to judgment here on how it proceeds. But “we obviously hope that the operation that the Pakistani military is conducting is successful, because it does represent a common enemy”.

Admiral Kirby also recalled the sacrifices of the Pakistan army in the fight against terrorists, saying that the Pentagon has never shied away from recognising these efforts.

“I said it before, but it’s worth reminding -- I mean, we recognise that the Pakistani military has taken casualties in this fight for many years. This isn’t the first time that they’ve conducted operations there,” he said.

The Pentagon spokesman noted that the recent attacks at the Karachi airport were “a very stark reminder” of how the threat of terrorism affects the Pakistani people. So, again, we wish them well, and we look forward to seeing them succeed.”

Asked if Pakistan would also target the Haqqani network, Admiral Kirby said he was not going to speak about the “intents and objectives” of an operation conducted by another army.

Responding to another question, the admiral said he did not know if Pakistan’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who visited the Pentagon this week, had sought US help for the operation.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2014