Militants part of Pak arsenal against India: US to its Senate

As Western powers look to reorient their engagement strategy in the AfPak region with the help of Islamabad, the US intelligence community has conveyed to its Senate that Pakistan regards some militant groups as part of its “strategic arsenal” to counter India and this, in their assessment, will “limit” Pakistan’s effort to root out extremist forces.

Presenting the US Intelligence Community’s Annual Threat Assessment to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on Tuesday, US Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair said: “Islamabad’s conviction that militant groups are an important part of its strategic arsenal to counter India’s military and economic advantages will continue to limit Pakistan’s incentive to pursue an across-the-board effort against extremism.”