Islamabad, Oct 20 (IANS): US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrives in Islamabad Thursday to get relations with Pakistan back on track and push Islamabad to act against the Haqqani network.
The visit takes place amid escalating tension over US and NATO troops in Afghanistan massing close to the Pakistan border. Hundreds of soldiers, heavy arms and helicopter gunships now man the border along North Waziristan and have completely sealed it.
The relationship has seen a sharp decline after the attack last month on the US embassy in Kabul and the truck bomb blast at a major American military base in Afghanistan's Maidan Wardak province, which were blamed on the Taliban-linked Haqqani network, reported Xinhua.
Senior US military leaders accused Pakistan's intelligence agency of supporting the Haqqani network in both attacks, a charge denied by Pakistan as irresponsible. The US side insists that the Haqqani network operates from Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal region along the border with Afghanistan.
US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta had warned of unilateral action against the Haqqani network and other Pakistan-based armed groups if Pakistan did not take action against them.
Pakistan has so far rejected the US pressure for a North Waziristan offensive and Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani told parliamentarians at a rare briefing that it is up to Pakistan if and when to launch military operation.
The relationship had also seen a decline after the US suspended in August $800 million in military aid and also attached tough conditions to future American assistance. General Kayani had told the lawmakers that the cutting of US aid will not affect the country's defence capability.
Clinton, who landed in Kabul late Wednesday, will arrive in Islamabad later Thursday and is scheduled to meet Pakistan's civil and military leadership, including President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Gen Kayani.
The new US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey, Central Intelligence Agency Director David Petraeus and Under-Secretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy will join Clinton in Islamabad.
A section of US media has described Clinton's visit as "a list-ditch effort" to salvage America's partnership with Pakistan, which is key to stability in Afghanistan at a time when the United States has started withdrawal of troops.
Sources said the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan, deadlocked after the assassination last month of Afghan peace envoy Burhanuddin Rabbani, will also come up for discussion. Afghanistan had suspended the peace process with Pakistan and also trilateral efforts involving Afghanistan, Pakistan and the US.
The US push for a Strategic Partnership Agreement with Afghanistan may also come under discussion as Pakistan and other neighbouring countries have concerns about the permanent US bases under the proposed pact. Kabul wants Washington to remove concerns of the neighbours before finalising the agreement, an Afghan diplomat in Islamabad has said.
Clinton's visit takes places just a few weeks before two important international conferences on Afghanistan for the future setup and peace process.
Turkey is hosting a conference in Istanbul next month and the second would be held in Bonn in December and sources said Clinton will also discuss matters relating to the conference.