US alarmed at Pak's unwillingness to tackle Taliban's unchallenged surge

Islamabad, Apr.24 (ANI): With the Taliban's unchallenged surge into newer regions inside Pakistan continuing, the United States has raised severe questions over Islamabad's willingness to tackle the issue, and the decision of the country's Army to keep away from the problem.

Consolidating their position inside Pakistan's geographical territory, some 400 to 500 insurgents entered the North West Frontier Province's Buner district, which is located just 70 miles away from the federal capital Islamabad.

The Taliban is also negotiating a treaty to implement Islamic laws, similar to what it imposed in the Swat Valley.

The insurgents are inching closer towards the country's capital, and the non-serious attitude of the government has irked the United States.

According to a New York Times report, even as the Pak army receives 1 billion dollars per year as military aid, it has repeatedly declined to confront the Taliban-led insurgency.

Pakistan's army is stuck with training and deploying its soldiers on its eastern border to fight its age old enemy, India.

The newspaper states that top officials are deeply reluctant to be pressed into action against insurgents, who enjoy family, ethnic and religious ties with many Pakistanis.

Experts have also said that Pakistan lacks will to counter the ever increasing threat perception from the Taliban.

"It illustrates there is a lack of political will in the Pakistan civilian leadership to confront these Pakistan Taliban," Democrat Senator from Rhode Island Jack Reed said.

"The Taliban sense this huge vacuum that they can pour into," Reed added.

US Defence Department officials also noted that the Pakistan Government was too worried about its own political survival to take on the militants.

The officials said that the Pakistan Army, police and the paramilitary forces lack counterinsurgency training, and have proved too weak to stand up to the militants. (ANI)