Pakistan’s restive areas a huge problem for US: Obama

Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama has said that al Qaida’s safe haven in the Pakistan’s restive northwest is a “huge problem” for the American troops.

At the Unity Convention of minority journalists in Chicago, Senator Obama repeated what top administration officials including senior military officials have been saying persistently — that “more effective cooperation” is needed from Pakistan to get rid of the safe havens.

“They’ve (al Qaida and Taliban) got safe havens there (in Pakistan’s tribal areas) that US troops can’t follow — that is a huge problem,” Senator Obama said.

“We’re going to need more troops in Afghanistan. But we’re also going to need more effective cooperation from the Pakistani government in rooting out these safe havens,” the Illinois Senator said.

Obama is expected to meet Gilani on Tuesday in which the goings on along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border are expected to be discussed.