|
U.S. and
Pakistani intelligence officials are drawing up a fresh list
of terrorist targets for Predator drone strikes along the
Pakistan-Afghanistan border, part of a U.S. review of the
drone program, according to officials involved.
Pakistani
officials are seeking to broaden the scope of the program to
target extremists who have carried out attacks against
Pakistanis, a move they say could win domestic support. The
Obama administration is weighing the effectiveness of the
program against the risk that its unpopularity weakens an
important ally.
Underlining the
fragility of the situation, the U.S. believes Pakistan's top
intelligence agency is directly supporting the Taliban and
other militants in Afghanistan, even as the U.S. targets
those groups, says a person close to the deliberations.
The Central
Intelligence Agency's drone program is important to
Washington because areas of Pakistan remain a haven for
Taliban and al Qaeda militants operating in Afghanistan.
The Obama
administration is reviewing how it uses missile strikes to
target militants on the border, according to
national-security officials, as part of a broad review of
its strategy toward Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The
administration considers the program a success, and the
program isn't expected to be significantly curtailed. But
officials familiar with the review say it could change the
pace and size of the program, and make some technical
refinements in an effort to hit targets faster. The review
seeks to determine under what circumstances drones should be
used, the officials say.
The broader
reassessment could be announced as soon as Friday, according
to people familiar with the matter. The review is believed
to address plans for increasing troops and combating drug
trafficking in Afghanistan, as well as strategies for
strengthening institutions of civil government and building
the economies in both countries.
President
Barack Obama has declared the war in Afghanistan is a key
foreign-policy priority, and the U.S. is sending an
additional 17,000 troops to amplify U.S. efforts there.
Spokesmen for
the White House's National Security Council, which is
conducting the review, and the CIA said they couldn't
confirm or comment on the review.
Officials
reviewing the drones policy are assessing how destabilizing
the strikes could be for Pakistan's government, which was
elected last year.
Pakistani
President Asif Ali Zardari and army chief Gen. Ashfaq Kayani
have quietly supported the attacks even though the strikes
have stirred domestic unrest -- largely because they have
killed some civilians, and many Pakistanis see al Qaeda as a
greater threat to the U.S. than to Pakistan.
But Mr.
Zardari's government has been shaky in recent weeks.
Large-scale protests forced him last week to allow the
reinstatement of Pakistan's Supreme Court chief justice, a
major concession to his opponents that left him politically
weakened.
Mr. Zardari was
pressed by senior U.S. officials, including Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton, to resolve the conflict peacefully --
pressure that included a warning that his resistance could
hurt the prospects of getting foreign aid for his country.
But stability
in Mr. Zardari's government is seen in Washington as
important to maintain support for U.S. efforts to strike at
terrorist targets. Washington also wants to get Islamabad to
take stronger steps against militants on the border.
|
