COAS Gen Ashfaq Pervez Kayani has declared that the Pakistan Army will not carry out any more military operation in the context of the war on terror just as US President Barack Obama, while stopping short of repeating the remarks of Admiral Mike Mullen that the Haqqani network was a 'veritable arm of the ISI, pressed once more for just such an operation against the network. That the USA has long been pressing an operation in North Waziristan has been well known, as well as the armys refusal to do so. However, now that there has been an actual crisis in Pakistan that has geared itself up to be invaded by the USA, the repetition of the demand seems to have added nothing to the discourse. However, since it has come at a time when the two countries are once again trying to repair the relationship, it appears that the USA is trying to make clear that only if such an operation is conducted, will it normalise relations. Another important dimension of President Obamas remarks was his raising of the subject of Pak-India relations, in which he not only justified the unjustifiable, by telling Pakistan not to object to the Indian role in Afghanistan, but also pressed Pakistan to accept the USAs propping up of India in the region as a counterweight to China, which implies accepting Indian hegemony. This not only means that President Obama has squarely placed the Haqqani network, Afghanistan and Pak-India relations at the centre of the regions dynamic, but also his acceptance that Pakistan is central to the effort against terrorism. That implies that the USA will continue to press Pakistan to act against its national interest and if the operation is conducted against the Haqqani network, Pakistan will ultimately be asked to accept Indian hegemony. The only way out for Pakistan would be to break with the USA. This might prove costly, but it seems that Pakistan might be forced to pay a higher price while maintaining the relationship.