United States against Pak-Taliban treaty

Agencies

Washington: Special US Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke said the Swat peace treaty between Taliban and Pakistan government was not an encouraging sign. "We will not like "bad guys" to get hold of any territory in Pakistan,"

Holbrooke said the Pakistanis are shocked at the fall of the picturesque Swat, which is after all a resort they all went to for vacations.

This is for the first time that an administration official has spoken clearly against the peace deal between the Taliban and the Pakistan government.

The issue, he said, will be pursued during the next week's visit of a Pakistani delegation headed by Foreign Minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi. Secretary of state Hillary Clinton had earlier said that Islamabad's efforts still needed to be "thoroughly understood" before making any comments.