Washington: Pakistan Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud's latest rhetoric that his group was ready to fight India is an effort to confuse the establishment in Islamabad, a leading American expert on South Asia said on Monday.
"The militant groups are trying to confuse the Pakistani public by declaring they are ready to defend Pakistan's borders and fight India," said Lisa Curtis of The Heritage Foundation.
"The hope is that the Pakistani public does not fall for such propaganda and recognises that, in fact, these militant non-state actors are really gunning for the Pakistani state," she said.
Noting that it will take a long-term effort to root out extremism and terrorism from Pakistani society, Curtis argued that a successful operation in Waziristan will point the country in the right direction.
"The Pakistani senior military leadership may be finally awakening to the fact that many of the Punjab-based militant groups who had previously focused on attacking India are now a serious threat to Pakistan," Curtis said.
She said the latest Pakistani military action against terrorists is decisive not only for Pakistan, but also for the international community as well.
"The battle for Waziristan will be one of the most decisive not only for Pakistan's own fight against extremism but for the safety and security of the broader international community," she added.
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