ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan pledged on Saturday to help Afghanistan end a 10-year Taliban insurgency, as their mutual ally the United States prepares to start a gradual troop withdrawal.

Pakistan has historically maintained close contacts with the Afghan Taliban and is seen as an important player that can push insurgent groups to the negotiating table.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Afghan President Hamid Karzai repeated his call for Pakistan on Friday to help end a 10-year Taliban insurgency, as their mutual ally the United States tries to build on battlefield gains to force a political settlement.

Pakistan is seen as a critical regional player with the clout to help all parties in the conflict reach a settlement.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s army chief called on Thursday for billions of dollars in U.S. military aid to be diverted into helping the economy to improve the lives of ordinary people.

The call by General Ashfaq Kayani at a meeting with his top commanders appeared to be aimed at bolstering the army’s popularity, dented after the killing of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a raid by U.S. forces on May 2.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan and the United States have agreed to resume joint intelligence operations against Islamist militants, the Pakistani foreign ministry said on Friday, in a first step toward rebuilding trust between the two countries.

The announcement came a week after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pressed Pakistan’s civilian and military leaders to take decisive steps against militant groups operating in the country after the discovery of Osama bin Laden in a garrison town.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan called on Thursday for stern action against militants in Afghanistan by Afghan and U.S.-led foreign forces after 27 Pakistani forces were killed in a cross-border attack by militants.

Forty-five militants were also killed in clashes that erupted after 300 to 400 militants from Afghanistan stormed a Pakistani checkpost in an attack in the northwestern region of Dir on Wednesday. The clashes lasted for more than 24 hours.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan is preparing for an offensive against militants in North Waziristan, a newspaper reported, a military operation that could prove far tougher than previous ones.

The Pashtun tribal region on the Afghan border is a global hub for militant networks, from al Qaeda and the Taliban to Arab fighters and sympathizers from all over the world including the West, so the army could face dangers from many sides.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Humanitarian agencies active in Pakistan’s northwest have been quietly told to prepare for up to 365,000 displaced people in advance of a military offensive against North Waziristan, a senior official with an international humanitarian agency said Monday.

The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, was responding to a media report in a local newspaper that Pakistan will launch a military offensive against al Qaeda and Taliban safe havens in the Afghan border regions.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Humanitarian agencies active in Pakistan’s northwest have been quietly told to prepare for up to 365,000 displaced people in advance of a military offensive against North Waziristan, a senior official with an international humanitarian agency said Monday.

The official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, was responding to a media report in a local newspaper that Pakistan will launch a military offensive against al Qaeda and Taliban safe havens in the Afghan border regions.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan will launch a military offensive in North Waziristan, a newspaper reported on Monday, days after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reiterated a U.S. demand to tackle sanctuaries for al Qaeda and the Taliban on the Afghan border.

An understanding for an offensive in North Waziristan, the main sanctuary in Pakistan for militants fighting in Afghanistan, was reached when Clinton and Chairman of the Joints Chief of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen visited Pakistan last week, Pakistan’s the News newspaper reported.

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Officers received training biased against the United States at a prestigious Pakistan army institution, according to Wikileaks, underscoring concerns that anti-Americanism in the country’s powerful military is growing amid strains with Washington.

A U.S. diplomatic cable said the former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson found officers at the National Defense University (NDU) were “naive and biased” against the United States, a key ally which gives Pakistan billions of dollars of aid to help fight Islamist militants.