Pakistan warns Petraeus against missile strikes

Pakistani officials warned Gen. David Petraeus on Monday that frequent missile strikes on militant targets in Pakistan fan anti-American sentiment in an Islamic country vital to the struggle against terrorism.

The new U.S. commander of America’s wars in Afghanistan and Iraq met Pakistani officials, including Defense Minister Ahmad Mukhtar and army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, as part of his first international trip since taking over U.S. Central Command three days earlier.

There is growing U.S. concern about how Islamic militants are using pockets of Pakistan’s northwest region as sanctuaries from which to support the escalating insurgency in neighboring Afghanistan.

Complaints from U.S. commanders about Pakistan’s efforts to counter the insurgents have been accompanied by a surge of missile strikes, which have continued despite strong condemnation from Islamabad.

A Defense Ministry statement said Mukhtar told Petraeus and Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher that the missile strikes from drones “generate anti-America sentiments as well as create outrage and uproar among the people.”

Washington is suspected in at least 17 missile strikes in Pakistan since August.