Pakistan Rejects U.S. Authorization To Pursue Al-Qaeda, Taliban In Pakistan

Pakistan rejects US authorization to pursue al Quaeda, Taliban in Pakistan

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2007/Pa...rsue_0304.html

Published: Sunday March 4, 2007

Islamabad yesterday "vigorously rejected" assertions made by Washington last week that it has the authority to cross into Pakistan to pursue al Qaeda and Taliban militants, reports Gulf Times.

"No one is permitted to cross our territorial borders," a spokeswoman for the Pakistani Foreign Ministry said. "There is no such understanding" that the US may pursue enemies into Pakistan.

US Lieutenant General Douglas Lute told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday regarding a supposed arrangement with Pakistan, "We have all the authorities we need to pursue, either with (artillery) fire or on the ground, across the border."

"The Foreign Ministry in Islamabad noted that such cross-border operations were political decisions that could not be taken by the military alone," writes Gulf Times. But Pakistan affirmed its position as a US ally in the war on terror.