US supply line through Pakistan is critical for war success in Afghanistan: US General tells Congress

WASHINGTON – Describing Pakistan’s support as imperative to the success ofUS’ South Asia strategy, US Central Command Chief General Joseph Votel hassaid there has been an increase in communication and information sharing.

In a statement, he made before Congress’ Armed Services Committee, the USGeneral also described the “political uncertainty” in Afghanistan as thegreatest risk to the stability in the country as the Afghan governmentcontinues to suffer from a professional governmental capacity deficit.

“We have preserved our valuable military-to-military relationship withPakistan and attempted to increase transparency and communication withinfluential military leaders,” the General told the lawmakers, adding thatthey were also keep pushing their concerns so secure US interests.

General Votel said security along the border with Afghanistan will remain apriority in 2018 as Pakistan seeks to expand border control mechanisms andefforts to improve paramilitary security capabilities.

“Recently we have started to see an increase in communication, informationsharing, and actions on the ground in response to our specific requests —these are positive indicators,” he added.

Stressing the importance of Pakistan in ensuring the success of PresidentTrump’s South Asia strategy, General Votel said that Islamabad’scooperation was imperative for the strategy’s success.

He said that the supply routes that Pakistan provided for transportinglogistics to the US forces in Afghanistan remained critical for theResolute SupportMission (RSM) in Afghanistan.

He again madean oft-repeated allegation about militant safe havens in thecountry’s border region.

However, the US general admitted that Pakistan had made many sacrifices inthe war against terrorism, including important contributions insignificantly degrading AQ and combatting ISIS-K.

He said that the Pakistani military had also undertaken several highprofile and effectivecounter-insurgency operations in North Waziristan and other parts of theFederally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) against terrorists.

The General emphasized that achieving long-term stability in Afghanistanand defeating the insurgency would be difficult without Pakistan’s supportand assistance.