The Pakistan Update

Complete transcript of the interview:

Mr. Ambassador, thanks very much for coming in.

HUSAIN HAQQANI, PAKISTANI AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: A pleasure being here, Wolf, as always.

BLITZER: “The New York Times” says this: “The harassment has grown so frequent that American officials said they viewed it as a concerted evident by parts of the military and intelligence services that had grown resentful of American demands to step up the war against the Taliban and Al Qaeda.”

What is going on?

HAQQANI: Wolf, Pakistan and the United States are allies and partners. And the government of Pakistan is trying very hard to work together with the United States for our shared objectives.

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QUESTION: The first question is in relation to the point you were discussing earlier, your visit to Pakistan. You went to mosque, you went to a (inaudible), you talked to students, you went to a police office where people were killed, you went to the museum of Iqbal, the man who (inaudible) Pakistan’s area. It was deemed in Pakistani media as a courageous act, your outreach. Even those who were critical of U.S. policy were appreciative of your courage and giving a message to the Pakistani leadership also.

What were the signs of hope, that in all that process, you saw in Pakistan?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, first, the resilience and the courage of the Pakistani people. Everywhere I went, I met people who are speaking out and standing up and working hard, and that was extremely moving to me. I also felt like both the civilian government and the military leadership understood that the threat they faced had to be addressed.

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Tags: Afghanistan, Hassan Abbas, Hillary Clinton, Pakistan, Secretary Clinton, United States

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QUESTION: Okay. Admiral Mullen this morning was referring to the civilian ramp-up in Afghanistan.

MR. KELLY: Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: And he talked about some estimates being that 500 civilians are needed, and other estimates being upwards of 2,000. So we know that the review has taken place. What is going on in terms of the timeline for ramping up how many State Department civilians are going to be sent there? And if you don’t know the answer, can you take it?

MR. KELLY: Well, I can give you a general answer, that this is a key part of our Afghanistan-Pakistan strategy to have a bigger civilian component. I don’t have the numbers in front of me or the timeline that would be needed to get these people on the ground. But, yes, I’ll be happy to take the question for the specifics.

QUESTION: Okay. Thanks.

MR. KELLY: Thank you.

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[Transcript Source: Geo TV]

QUESTION: Secretary, thank you very much for being with us. Tell us, it was said before announcing the Afghan policy that Pakistani point of view will be taken into consideration and Pakistanis they have expressed their concern about surge of troops inside Afghanistan how the Pakistanis concerns have been addressed in this new strategy.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, there was a great deal of consultation of course, when I visited the country. I spent time talking with both leaders of government as well as the military and intelligence services. I spoke with other representatives, citizens, our national security advisor General Jones, head of CIA Leon Panetta, General McChrystal and General Petraeus. We have been consulting on an ongoing basis with our counterparts in Pakistan. And I think what the President will announce today is very much in keeping with what we heard. Every one wants a stable and secure Afghanistan. Pakistan does not want to see problems being exported to your country. They want to see Afghanistan with the ability to defend itself. Al-Qaida and their extremist allies are threatening to every one. We know that the terrible violence that has been afflicted on the people of Pakistan over the last week emanates from a syndicate of terror. So we want to help Afghanistan take more responsibility. We want to partner with Pakistan as you make sure that you protect your sovereignty and territory. We think that in the long term, that is in the best interest of all three countries.

QUESTION: Madam Secretary, keeping in mind the political situation in Pakistan, do you believe that the present government – the political government is able to deliver what the world is expecting of them?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, democracy builds strong institutions and I think Pakistan is committed to democracy. Your internal political challenges are ones for you to address but we want to support democracy of Pakistan. We want to do so in a way that will strengthen it and will give the people of Pakistan the kind of future they tell us that they want. We have expressed here all the time, schools for every one, healthcare for every one, better jobs for every one. That’s what every one wants and I think what we want to do is to be a good partner to help you achieve that.

QUESTION: Secretary, thank you very much.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Nice to talk with you

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