US ups pressure on Pakistan over envoy

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

In a sign of new and serious tensions between the United States and a key counterterror ally, the Obama administration has suspended some high-level contacts with Pakistan and may downgrade the status of an upcoming meeting to boost pressure on the government to release a U.S. Embassy employee who killed two Pakistanis, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

The dispute over the arrest of the man has become a crisis in U.S.- Pakistan relations, and officials said they feared it could threaten future cooperation in a critical theater of the war against extremists and al-Qaida unless it is resolved quickly. Two top Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee said U.S. aid to Pakistan is in jeopardy if the American is not released.

The detainee case has clouded prospects for three-way strategic talks among Afghanistan, Pakistan and the U.S. that are set for Feb. 24 in Washington.

Though officials said the talks still are scheduled, they said the discussions could be postponed or downgraded to a lower level if the case has not been resolved by then.

Washington insists the detained American has diplomatic immunity and shot the Pakistanis in self-defense as they tried to rob him at gunpoint. The U.S. says the man’s detention is illegal under international agreements covering diplomatic ties.