Obama concerned over fragility of Pakistan regime

AS PAKISTANI forces pounded Taliban positions for a third successive day, US president Barack Obama expressed “grave concern” about the stability of the government in Islamabad.

Mr Obama used a press conference marking his 100th day as president to address the situation in Pakistan, where the Taliban this week seized control of districts just 100km from the capital.

“I am gravely concerned about the situation in Pakistan not because I think that they’re immediately going to be overrun and the Taliban would take over in Pakistan, more concerned that the civilian government there right now is very fragile and don’t seem to have the capacity to deliver basic services – schools, health care, rule of law, a judicial system that works for the majority of people,” he said.

The president expressed confidence that, despite the weakness of Pakistan’s government, there was little danger of the country’s nuclear arsenal falling into Taliban hands.

“I’m confident that we can make sure that Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal is secure – primarily, initially, because the Pakistani army, I think, recognises the hazards of those weapons falling into the wrong hands. We’ve got strong military-to-military consultation and co-operation,” he said.

The press conference came at the end of a day of political triumph for the president that started with a meeting at the White House with Pennsylvania senator Arlen Specter, who this week defected from the Republicans to the Democrats.

Later in the day, both houses of Congress approved Mr Obama’s $3.4 trillion budget blueprint, paving the way for an ambitious agenda including health care reform and major infrastructure projects.

“This budget builds on the steps we’ve taken over the last 100 days to move this economy from recession to recovery and ultimately to prosperity,” Mr Obama said.

In the president’s third press conference since taking office, questions ranged across domestic and foreign policy issues, including the Bush administration’s use of harsh interrogation techniques.

Declaring flatly that the waterboarding of detainees authorised by the Bush administration was torture, Mr Obama said harsh interrogation had not produced any intelligence that could not be obtained by other means.

“I will do whatever is required to keep the American people safe,” he said.

“But I am convinced that the best way to do that is to make sure we’re not taking shortcuts that undermine who we are.”

Republicans have accused Mr Obama of endangering national security by publishing legal memos from the previous administration authorising torture.

Liberals are disappointed that the president opposes establishing a truth commission to investigate the use of torture or prosecuting former officials who ordered and practised it.

During the election campaign, Mr Obama said he wanted to introduce comprehensive immigration reform during his first year as president.

Last night, he said that border controls and other enforcement measures would have to be improved before new legislation, adding that he hoped to take these “key administrative steps” this year.

“What we want to do is to show that we are competent in getting results around immigration, even on the structures that we already have in place, the laws that we already have in place, so that we’re building confidence among the American people that we can actually follow through on whatever legislative approach emerges,” he said.

“I see the process moving this first year, and I’m going to be moving it as quickly as I can.”

With opinion polls showing two out of three Americans approving of their president’s performance so far, Mr Obama said he was pleased with his administration’s progress but stressed that much remained to be done.

“Millions of Americans are still without jobs and homes, and more will be lost before this recession is over. Credit is still not flowing nearly as freely as it should. Countless families and communities touched by our auto industry still face tough times ahead. Our projected long-term deficits are still too high. Government is still not as efficient as it should be. We still confront threats ranging from terrorism to nuclear proliferation to pandemic flu,” he said.

“And all of this means you can expect an unrelenting, unyielding effort from this administration to strengthen our prosperity and our security – in the second 100 days, and the third 100 days, and all the days after.”