By JULIAN E. BARNES
WASHINGTON—Defense Secretary Robert Gates said "somebody" in Pakistan—either current or past government officials—knew about Osama bin Laden's presence in the country, but he doesn't believe Islamabad's top leaders were aware.
Mr. Gates and Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told journalists Wednesday that Pakistani leaders have been "humiliated" by the raid on bin Laden's compound and have an opportunity to move against militant groups seeking safe haven in the country. Mr. Gates suggested the U.S. would give Islamabad the chance to prove itself before again taking unilateral action in Pakistan.
"Pakistanis, over the last couple weeks, have expressed the view they are willing to go after some of these people and we should not repeat the bin Laden operation," Mr. Gates said. "This provides us an opportunity, and we should take them up on it."
Mr. Gates' comments appeared to be an attempt to pressure Islamabad into stepping up its campaign against Islamist militants, particularly those along the Afghanistan border. The Navy SEAL raid that killed bin Laden this month also widened a rift between the U.S. officials, who believe many Pakistanis are playing both sides, and Pakistani officials, who believe the U.S. is an unreliable ally who doesn't appreciate the blood Pakistanis have already spilled fighting al Qaeda, the Taliban and other militant groups.
Although the rhetoric has grown heated since the bin Laden raid, this week Pakistani security forces caught an alleged mid-level al Qaeda operative in Karachi, using intelligence provided by the U.S. Islamabad has also given the U.S. access to bin Laden's widows, who were captured by Pakistani forces after the SEALs left.
Adm. Mullen said he has received assurances from Pakistan's army chief of staff, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, that Islamabad would move against the Haqqani network. The Haqqanis, militants who take refuge in Pakistan's North Waziristan region, have targeted U.S. troops in eastern Afghanistan and conducted spectacular attacks in Kabul. But Adm. Mullen seemed to acknowledge that Islamabad might not take action quickly enough for the U.S.
"Our clock moves a lot faster than his clock," Adm. Mullen said.
Other U.S. officials are skeptical Pakistan plans to take on the Haqqanis. Islamabad has publicly invited the militant group to Afghan peace talks and has never shown a willingness to target the group. The Pakistani intelligence service has long cultivated the Haqqanis, believing the group will protect Pakistani interests in Afghanistan and seeing it as a crucial counter to growing Indian influence in Kabul.
In the wake of the bin Laden raid, members of Congress have criticized Pakistani leaders for failing to take action against, or even supporting, some Taliban and other militant leaders. Lawmakers have suggested making billions of dollars in U.S. aid contingent upon improved results in Islamabad's campaign against the militants
Mr. Gates said he understood the frustration on Capitol Hill but urged lawmakers to proceed cautiously. He said he believed the U.S. must continue to provide economic and military support for Pakistan.
"We do have significant interests in Pakistan," he said.
Adm. Mullen has been the government's point person with Pakistan, carefully cultivating his relationship with Gen. Kayani. He insisted Wednesday that those ties have yielded results in terms of coaxing Pakistan to take on the militants.
If the U.S. were to break off its relationship with Pakistan there would be a "really significantly negative outcome," he said.
The two Pentagon leaders also expressed frustration that so many details of the bin Laden raid have been made public. Those disclosures, Mr. Gates said, make future operations "more difficult and riskier."
Adm. Mullen urged both current officials and people retired from the special-operations forces to stop discussing the raid.
"We have, from my perspective, gotten to a point where we are close to jeopardizing this precious capability that we have, and we can't afford to do that," Adm. Mullen said. "It is time to stop talking."
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