Kayani sought US assistance in FATA operation: WikiLeaks

The leaked cables revealed that Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani sought the US help during the FATA operation.According to WikiLeaks, some Pakistani security officials used to inform the US consulate in Peshawar about the views of General Kayani and the strategy of the Pakistan Army in the war against terrorism.According to the cables, the US account of Kayani’s request for “Predator coverage” does not make clear if mere air surveillance were being requested or missile-armed drones were being sought. The cable sent in February 2008 divulged that Kayani had assured Admiral Fallon in a meeting that the army would restrict its role to maintaining law and order during the general elections. Commenting on the Afghan war, Kayani said that he had given a blank check to Afghan General Bismillah for his men’s training in Pakistan. According to the US Peshawar Consulate cables, Kayani believed that Afghan Taliban were willing to distance themselves from Al Qaeda by forming a political party. Peshawar Consulate Principal Officer Candace Putnam said in her dispatch sent in October 2009 that a Pakistani official and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister Sitara Imtiaz insisted to intensify drone attacks in Pakistan.Meanwhile, the ISPR has rejected the WikiLeaks report that the army chief had asked for drone help during FATA operation. No technical help had been sought whatsoever from the United States, it said.