Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


US, Pakistan Continue Push to Repair Ties

   VOA News  May 19, 2011

   Two high-level American officials are holding talks with Pakistani
   leaders in a push to repair ties further strained by the U.S. raid that
   killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden.
   The U.S. special representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Marc
   Grossman, discussed U.S.-Pakistan relations with Pakistan's president,
   Asif Ali Zardari, and Pakistan's army chief, General Ashfaq Kayani, in
   Islamabad on Thursday.
   A military statement said Grossman and Kayani discussed future
   engagement between both countries and reconciliation efforts in
   Afghanistan.
   The deputy director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Michael
   Morell, is holding talks with Pakistan's intelligence agency chief,
   General Ahmed Shuja Pasha.
   The visit comes days after U.S. Senator John Kerry traveled to Pakistan
   in a bid to get relations back on track. Secretary of State Hillary
   Clinton is also planning a visit to Pakistan, though the dates have not
   yet been set.
   Pakistan has complained that the May 2 raid by U.S. special forces was
   a breach of its sovereignty, and said such future actions would carry
   serious consequences.
   The discovery of bin Laden in the garrison town of Abbottabad has also
   raised questions about whether he was being hidden by accomplices in
   Pakistan's military or intelligence service.
   U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday there is no evidence
   suggesting that senior Pakistani leadership knew bin Laden's
   whereabouts. But Gates said he still believes somebody in Pakistan
   probably knew where bin Laden was hiding.
   Some U.S. lawmakers, angered by the discovery in bin Laden in Pakistan,
   have threatened to cut off billions of dollars in U.S. aid to Pakistan.
   Relations between the two countries were already strained, following a
   series of drone attacks against militants in Pakistan's northwest and
   the detention of a CIA contractor who shot and killed two Pakistanis in
   Lahore in January.
   U.S. officials have never publicly acknowledged the use of drones
   against militants inside Pakistan, but have privately confirmed their
   existence to various media outlets.

   Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

.