Who's right on Pakistan? Sen. Kerry or Sec. Clinton?

Read the original here.

Clinton Vs Kerry On Pakistan

May 17, 2011 6:04 PM

ABC News' Kirit Radia (@KiritRadia_ABC) reports: There appears to be a disconnect between what Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Senator John Kerry, D-MA, are saying about U.S. relations with Pakistan. Administration officials, and Secretary Clinton, don’t seem particularly pleased by his recent effort in Islamabad.

Yesterday during his visit there Kerry touted that relations between Washington and Islamabad had been “re-set” after the surprise US Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil.

Yet today, when asked whether US-Pakistan relations had actually turned the corner, Clinton said there was a long way to go.

“We are working very hard to have an understanding with our counterparts in Pakistan about the best way forward,” she said. “There are important concerns and many questions that have to be addressed and worked through.”

In fact, Clinton made it clear that Kerry didn’t speak for the administration, offering perhaps a pointed dig at the fact that Kerry issued a joint statement with Pakistani officials that was billed as a joint US-Pakistan statement (administration officials insist this was Kerry freelancing).

“I appreciate very much his delivering to the Pakistanis, in his capacity as Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, a clear perspective on the concerns of the United States Congress,” Clinton said today, emphasizing Kerry’s position in the legislative branch.

Clinton is dispatching her top aide on the region, Marc Grossman, who is slated to arrive in Pakistan on Thursday. It’s maybe another sign that Clinton had her own messages to deliver to Pakistani officials.

Kerry said during a hearing this morning that Pakistan had agreed to take several steps to pave the way for Clinton’s eventual visit, but he said he would leave it up to the executive branch to announce.

Asked what those steps were, Clinton offered a less than enthusiastic response.

“I’m not going to comment on any specific issue that Senator Kerry referred to in any of his public remarks, but we are going to be working very hard in the days and weeks ahead to ensure that we have a path forward that continues the progress and answers a lot of the concerns that both sides have at this point,” she said.

There has been a bit of tension between Kerry and Clinton, despite the fact that Kerry has been used to send messages for the administration to leaders around the world. In particular, officials say Clinton was not happy with Kerry’s staunch support for Syrian President Bashar al Assad, which he insisted was a reformer. Clinton was not convinced.

References
^ « Previous (blogs.abcnews.com)
^ Main (blogs.abcnews.com)
^ Next » (blogs.abcnews.com)