By DEXTER FILKINS
Published: May 7, 2009
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani vowed Thursday to “eliminate” the Taliban militants who have taken over large parts of the country, publicly declaring a get-tough strategy that American officials have been urging on him since he took office last year.
“To restore the honor and dignity of our homeland and to protect our people, the armed forces have been called in to eliminate the militants and terrorists,” Mr. Gilani said in a nationally televised address. “We will not bow before extremists and terrorists.”
Mr. Gilani delivered the speech as Pakistani soldiers battled Islamic militants who had taken control of three districts northwest of the capital, Islamabad. In one of those areas, Swat, Mr. Gilani said, the militants had reneged on a peace deal signed in February and had no one to blame but themselves.
“The militants have waged war against all segments of society,” Mr. Gilani said. “I regret to say that our bona fide intention to prefer reconciliation with them was perceived as a weakness on our part.”
The speech appeared to reflect a break with the Taliban, who have been supported by elements of the Pakistan military and intelligence services since the mid-1990s. That support, which has been provided covertly, has enraged a succession of American leaders, who have helped give Pakistan’s military more than $1 billion a year since 2001.
Pakistan’s military has fought a desultory series of campaigns against the Taliban since 2004, and the militants have only grown stronger. It has never been clear the degree to which the failures of those military campaigns has been caused by incompetence, and how much by complicity. Pakistan’s army is in many respects stronger than the civilian government, and military leaders have ruled the country more often than not since its birth in 1947.
Mr. Gilani alluded to the growing impatience with the double game. “Our reputation among the international community has deteriorated, and we are labeled as terrorists,” he said.
The timing of Mr. Gilani’s address was hardly an accident. He made it a day after Pakistan’s president, Asif Ali Zardari, met with President Obama in Washington. American officials have expressed alarm that the Taliban militants are threatening the integrity of the Pakistani state. Mr. Zardari has asked Mr. Obama for more military and economic aid, and Mr. Obama has indicated that he intends to oblige him.
A collapse of the Pakistani state would be catastrophic for American and Western interests. The Taliban already use sanctuaries in Pakistan to attack American forces in Afghanistan. And there are fears that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons could fall into the hands of Islamic militants.
A version of this article appeared in print on May 8, 2009, on page A12 of the New York edition.
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