Pentagon chief Leon Panetta...current SecDef, previously Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Panetta served as President Bill Clinton's White House Chief of Staff from 1994 to 1997 and was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1977 to 1993....
says the US would continue its drone attacks in Pakistain despite complaints from Islamabad that the strikes violate its illusory sovereignty.
"We have made it very clear that we are going to continue to defend ourselves," the US defense secretary said during a conference in India on Wednesday.
Panetta also dismissed suggestions that the strikes could violate Pakistain's illusory sovereignty.
"This is about our illusory sovereignty as well," he added.
On Tuesday, Pakistain's Foreign Ministry summoned the US Charge d'affaires Richard Hoagland over Washington's continued liquidation drone attacks in the country.
The move came following a recent hike in the number of the unauthorized air attacks, which Pakistain has repeatedly criticized as counter-productive.
Washington claims its drone strikes target krazed killers, though casualty figures clearly indicate that Pak civilians are the main victims of the non-UN-sanctioned attacks.