US denies threatening Haqqani with expulsion from Washington over Davis affair
By ANISaturday, February 12, 2011
WASHINGTON - The United States has denied reports that President Barack Obama’s National Security Advisor Tom Donilon delivered a presidential threat to Pakistan that it must release double-murder accused US diplomat Raymond Davis by Friday or face the consequences.
According to a ABC News report, two Pakistani officials involved in negotiations about Davis said that Donilon summoned Pakistan’s Ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani, to the White House on Monday evening, and told him that the US will kick Haqqani out of the country, close US consulates in Pakistan and cancel Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari’s upcoming visit to Washington if the detained US embassy employee is not released from custody by Friday.
In a press release titled “Correction for the record”, the US Embassy in Islamabad said that ABC News carried a story regarding a conversation in Washington between senior US and Pakistani officials.
“Although we are unable to discuss the substance of a private diplomatic meeting, U.S. Embassy Islamabad can state categorically that the description of the conversation in this report is simply inaccurate,” the US Embassy added.
Haqqani also denied the report, saying: “While the US side has let its position be known to us, at no stage has any threat been made to me by any US official at any level and our dialogue continues.”
“The US and Pakistan remain partners and we look forward to resolving the Raymond Davis case in accordance with international and Pakistani law and in the spirit of our countries’ friendship,” Haqqani was quoted, as telling a news agency.
According to the ABC report, US officials believe that Davis’ life is in danger the longer he spends time in a Lahore jail cell, the target of anti-American resentment from Pakistani citizens, some of whom have called for the US national to be executed.
“Our first fear is that the sentiment of the street in Pakistan is, ‘Let’s take him and hang him,’” said a current senior US official, according to whom administration officials fear that the Pakistan government lacks control over the Lahore municipal police, who have Davis in custody. (ANI)
