"Coming and invading FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) would be, I think, not a very sensible thing. It would be very counter-productive, and the people of Pakistan would react to it very strongly,” Shah Mahmood Qureshi said at International Institute for Strategic Studies think-tank in central London on Thursday.
25 July 2008: Press-TV
Pakistan's foreign minister says that his country will not allow the US troops to carry out operations into its tribal belt near Afghanistan.
"Coming and invading FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) would be, I think, not a very sensible thing. It would be very counter-productive, and the people of Pakistan would react to it very strongly,” Shah Mahmood Qureshi said at International Institute for Strategic Studies think-tank in central London on Thursday.
"It will not solve any issue. First of all, we are a sovereign country and... we feel that we have capable troops in Pakistan that can look after peace and security within our territory," Qureshi added.
"By enhancing our capacity, building our capacity, our troops that are capable can do a much better job. They understand the people, the language, the customs and the traditions," he noted.
His comments come amid mounting fears in Pakistan that the United States is prepared to launch military "hot pursuit" raids into the troubled Pakistani tribal belt as attacks soar in Afghanistan.
In recent days, news reports said Washington was taking steps to make it easier to launch covert special missions in Pakistan's remote tribal areas, near Afghan border, where al-Qaeda is believed to be rebuilding its network.
