Prometheus 6

Yes, I said Taliban.

In theory, Pakistan's security forces are in opposition to the Taliban, who are now firmly entrenched across the country's Federally Administered Tribal Areas and encroaching on the adjacent region in the North West Frontier Province, known as the "settled" areas. In reality, the government has ceded large swathes of territory to the extremists.

Pakistan Wants 'Partnership' With U.S., Official Says
Foreign Minister, on D.C. Visit, Conveys Interest in Moving Beyond Security-Based Ties
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, July 12, 2008; A09

The new government of Pakistan is seeking a "partnership" with the United States and wants tangible signs that the Bush administration will increase aid and embrace Pakistani democracy, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said yesterday.

"We want to be positive, we want to cooperate, we want a long-term relationship, we want a partnership. So how serious are you in broadening that relationship -- that is what we want to know," Qureshi said in a wide-ranging interview with Washington Post editors and reporters.