Pakistan's spy service: MoD statement

In response to Newsnight's report on a think-tank paper written by a senior officer at the Ministry of Defence-run Defence Academy, which alleges that Pakistan's intelligence service, the ISI, has indirectly helped the Taleban and al-Qaeda and should be dismantled, the MoD has issued this statement.

Musharraf defends ISI Document quotes

The academic research notes quoted in no way represent the views of either the MoD or the Government. To represent it as such is deeply irresponsible and the author is furious that his notes have been wilfully misrepresented in this manner. Indeed, he suspects that they have been released to the BBC precisely in the hope that they would cause damage to our relations with Pakistan.

Pakistan is a key ally in our efforts to combat international terrorism and her security forces have made considerable sacrifices in tackling al-Qaeda and the Taleban. We are working closely with Pakistan to tackle the root causes of terrorism and extremism.