Obama likely to deny Nawaz’s request to stop drone strikes in Pakistan, say analysts

Washington – President Barack Obama is likely to deny Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s request to end U.S. drone strikes against suspected terrorists in its tribal regions, analysts said.

In his speech just a day before his much awaited meeting with Obama, Sharif urged the United States to stop drone strikes inside Pakistan, claiming that the South Asian nation is “neither a source of nor the epicenter of terrorism.”

Sharif is also expected to ask Obama to intervene in the long-standing dispute with India, when the two leaders meet at the White House today, the Washington Times reports.

However, Obama administration is reluctant to get involved, the report added.

Analysts said the Obama administration is likely to continue drone strikes in Pakistan as they hit terrorist targets that pose threats to U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Sharif has repeatedly said that the unmanned US aerial strikes have become a “major irritant” in their bilateral relationship.