Terrorist groups becoming more linked in Af-Pak: US

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen said he is worried a great deal about Afghanistan essentially becoming a failed state and a safe terror haven.

Acknowledging that different terrorist outfits are becoming more linked with each other which could lead to the revival of Al-Qaeda and Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan,a US military commander has underlined the need for a 8220;combination of effort8221; to prevent them from regaining the 8220;epicentre8221;.

8220;I would say it Af-Pak is the epicentre of terrorism right now. It8217;s very clear that in fact al Qaeda is diminished while it8217;s living in Pakistan,and this is a Pakistan-Afghanistan issue. They are by no means dead,8221; Admiral Mike Mullen,Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,told US lawmakers during a Congressional hearing.

8220;It8217;s a very serious threat. And that if we allow the Taliban to take control and run Afghanistan again,I think the likelihood that their return to that safe haven would be high,8221; Mullen said.

He said if Afghanistan has a strong enough government and security,it can prevent al Qaeda from coming back. 8220;And that doesn8217;t include 8211; at least,clearly,it doesn8217;t include the Taliban under their current leadership,8221; he said.

8220;And the 8216;defeat al Qaeda8217; piece 8211; and it does focus on al Qaeda,but these terrorists and extremists,particularly in recent years,have become much more linked. So yes,it8217;s al Qaeda,but it8217;s also the Taliban; it8217;s also LeT Lashkar-e-Taiba; it8217;s also TTPTehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan,it8217;s JuD Jamaat-ud-Dawa,it8217;s JeM Jaish-e-Mohammad,and all of them have the same kind of outlook,8221; he said.

8220;Now,each one of them does not threaten us directly,as a country,but the totality of this epicentre there,in terms of the terrorists who are there,is one that I am extremely concerned about,led by al Qaeda,8221; Mullen argued.

Mullen said he is worried a great deal about Afghanistan essentially becoming a failed state and a safe haven. 8220;And while not immediately,maybe the mid-term affects that that has on Pakistan. And the President8217;s strategy and I strongly agree with this 8212; it8217;s a regional strategy.

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8220;It involves both those countries,even though they8217;re both sovereign countries,they have links that go back through the ages,8221; he said in response to a question.

8220;There are other countries in the region and I think we need to be paying a lot of attention to this as well,India being a specific one. And it8217;s very difficult to predict here.

8220;It is actually 8211; I think what has happened in Afghanistan as difficult as it is,has contributed to the diminishment of al Qaeda even in Pakistan,8221; he said.

8220;So it is the combination of efforts in both countries I think that is so important,to get at what is the core goal of the President8217;s strategy which is al Qaeda.

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8220;I don8217;t know for sure but I worry a great deal that if the Taliban retake Afghanistan,that in fact clearly the option is there to recreate that safe haven where they8217;re pretty comfortable,8221; Mullen said.

The long-term effects of that could be very disastrous for the US and its national interests,assuming al Qaeda is somehow able to both plan and execute attacks,which they are planning to do today,he noted.