Cameron making Pak a scapegoat for Afghanistan failures: Imran Khan

Bangalore/Islamabad, July 30 (ANI): Former cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan has said that British Prime Minister David Cameron is trying to make Pakistan a scapegoat for the failure of the war in Afghanistan.

Khan compared the treatment of Pakistan with that of Cambodia during the Vietnam war after Cameron made his remarks in Bangalore during a question and answer session following a speech.

He was asked by a member of the audience why the UK was pouring money into Pakistan, given reports that it was linked to the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks.

Cameron said: "We can not tolerate in any sense the idea that this country is allowed to look both ways and is able, in any way, to promote the export of terror, whether to India or whether to Afghanistan or anywhere else in the world.

"It should be a relationship based on a very clear message: that it is not right to have any relationship with groups that are promoting terror. Democratic states that want to be part of the developed world," he added.

"There is obviously a lot of anger in Pakistan at David Cameron's statement because here people feel this country is the biggest sufferer of terrorism," Imran told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme from Islamabad.

He added: "We are being blamed for the complete failure of the Afghanistan campaign, this doomed campaign. Pakistan has become the scapegoat. Pakistan has become what Cambodia was in the Vietnam War. The failure in Vietnam was blamed on Cambodia and Cambodia was destroyed by the bombing. Today Pakistan is being bombed by its ally, the US... killing mostly innocent people."

Pakistan responded with alarm to Mr Cameron's words.

Abdul Basit, spokesman for the Pakistan Foreign Ministry, said: "Pakistan is fully committed against militancy and terrorism anywhere in the world as we ourselves are victims of this hydra-headed menace." (ANI)