PM Gilani faces a hard task explaining his government's policy on terrorism to an impatient Bush administration looking for quick fixes. He has already met President Bush and is scheduled to address the US Council on Foreign Relations today. Besides meeting Vice President Dick Cheney and secretaries of state, defence and treasury he would be holding talks with Presidential hopefuls Barrack Obama and John McCain. Every leader of the administration and the Democrats he meets would be asking questions about Pakistan's terrorism policy. What is going to be tested is Mr Gilani's ability to convince them about the soundness of the holistic policy being pursued by his government. Pakistan's two neighbours, Afghanistan and India, have done their lot to influence American public opinion against Pakistan. Instead of setting his house in order President Karzai continues to blame Pakistan for the rise of insurgency in Afghanistan. Over the last five years he has failed to control the powerful drug lords who support insurgency with money and arms as an unstable Afghanistan helps them pursue their nefarious activities. He has also failed to set up an honest and efficient establishment without which he cannot hope to extend his control beyond Kabul. Similarly, to isolate Pakistan and extend its sphere of influence to Afghanistan, India joins hands with Kabul to malign Pakistan, the most recent example being its attempt to implicate a Pakistani security agency in the attack on its Kabul embassy. Mr Gilani needs to explain the motives behind these allegations. NATO too needs to put its act together and contribute more troops to fight militants in Afghanistan than blame Pakistan for not doing more. The US leadership needs to be told that reliance on brute force alone tends to strengthen militants and spread their influence. Despite Pakistan stationing over 80,000 troops along the Durand Line, conducting full scale military operations in North and South Waziristan and launching attacks in Bajaur Agency, there has been no let up to the phenomenon. What the elected government is trying to do now is to control it through a multi-pronged policy that which is endorsed by the coalition partners and enjoys wide public support. And it is being implemented with the help of the provincial government led by parties having roots in the region. Within a span of about four months the policy has started to pay off. Suicide attacks have either come to an end and terrorist acts considerably reduced. Law enforcement agencies have conducted operations in pockets, which could not be brought under control through peaceful means. If the policy is continued, there is hope that crossborder movement by the militants will also be considerably reduced.