WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is considering widening missile strikes on al-Qaeda and the Taliban inside Pakistan and is planning to bolster the training of Pakistan’s forces in a key border battleground where militants fuel the escalating Afghan insurgency, according to U.S. officials.
The officials said the stepped- up moves against the militant networks could extend the airstrikes farther south, beyond the current target areas in Waziristan and into the western province of Baluchistan. U.S. special operations forces are developing plans to expand their training of Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps into that province.
Rep. Adam Smith, chairman of the House Armed Services subcommittee on terrorism, acknowledged that there have been “discussions, in Congress and a lot of different places, to expand the area” where the drone attacks are being conducted.
He would not provide details, but a U.S. government official said Friday that discussions are underway to expand those attacks into Baluchistan. That official and others spoke on condition of anonymity because the drone program is classified, and decisions on the training program are not yet final.
