04 January,2009 05:48 PM IST | | IANS
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Sunday that solving the "Pakistan problem" is crucial to an Afghan strategy.
Asked if more troops were needed in Afghanistan, Brown told BBC in an interview: "We [Britain] have already got more troops there but we need to solve the Pakistan problem."
"We need to ensure that there's an economic stake in the country in Afghanistan and we've got to back up the Afghan army - at some point they've got to take control of their own affairs."
In a separate interview with The Observer newspaper published Sunday, the British leader said British forces are endangered by the ability of terrorists to move to and fro Pakistan.
ALSO READ
Indian Army arrests Lashkar-e-Taiba group guide in Poonch dst of Jammu-Kashmir
"Sanjay Raut speaks same as Pakistan and ISI": Shiv Sena MP Naresh Mhaske over UBT leader's remarks on Pahalgam attack
'Issue goes beyond': Harbhajan Singh on whether India should travel to Pakistan
Pak: Imran Khan's party challenges ECP's inquiry on its intra-party elections
Gillespie, Kirsten want Masood and Babar to continue as Pakistan captains
"As long as there are terrorists going back and forward from Pakistan to Afghanistanu2026 then this is a huge danger for our British forces."
"Afghanistan's got to take more responsibility for its own affairs, but Pakistan's got to be involved more directly in the battle against this terrorist inrush into Afghanistan," he said.
"It's about how we can gradually move Afghan army and police into more control of their own affairs, and get central government moving in Afghanistan," Brown added.
u00a0
