Top U.S. Military Official Arrives In Pakistan: Officials

Top US military official arrives in Pakistan: officials

http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Top_US_..._12222008.html

Published: Monday December 22, 2008

The highest-ranking US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, arrived here Monday for talks with senior officials amid tensions between Pakistan and India over the Mumbai attacks, officials said.

This is the second visit to Pakistan this month by Mullen, who is the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Pakistan is one of Washington's key allies in the "war on terror" but has recently been criticised for not doing enough to combat militancy within its borders and put an end to Taliban attacks on US forces in Afghanistan.

Islamabad has also come under pressure from India to be more cooperative in the wake of the Mumbai attacks, which New Delhi has blamed on Pakistan-based militants. Washington has sought to calm tensions between the neighbours.

Mullen met Pakistani national security advisor Mehmood Ali Durrani shortly after his arrival, a senior Pakistani government official told AFP.

He was later expected to hold talks with army chief Ashfaq Kayani on India-Pakistan relations and the fight against Taliban militants operating in the lawless tribal areas on the Afghan border.

US embassy spokesman Lou Fintor told AFP that Mullen was in Islamabad for "scheduled talks with senior Pakistani officials on regional issues."

Mullen was in Kabul at the weekend, where he said the United States could send up to 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan by the middle of next year.