NATO Plays Down Report of Collaboration Between Taliban and Pakistan

A spokesman for the NATO-led coalition on Wednesday confirmed the existence of a report that summarizes the views of Taliban detainees who said that they are winning the war thanks to cooperation from some Afghan government officials and soldiers with active support from Pakistan’s intelligence service.

But the official, Lt. Col Jimmie E. Cummings of the International Security Assistance Force, disputed accounts of the NATO report that suggested the alliance’s analysts accepted the Taliban views as valid.

“This document aggregates the comments of Taliban detainees in a captive environment, without considering the validity of or motivation behind their reflections. Any conclusions drawn from this would be questionable at best.”

The report apparently was leaked a day before a visit here by Hina Rabbani Khar, the Pakistani foreign minister, the first after months of strained relations.

On Wednesday, she dismissed initial news reports about the document, saying the interpretations could be “disregarded,” Reuters reported.

”We can disregard this as a potentially strategic leak,” Reuters quoted her as saying. This is old wine in an even older bottle.”

The report, called the State of the Taliban, was apparently obtained by the BBC and The Times of London, which published accounts late Tuesday. The BBC said it was based on 27,000 interrogations of 4,000 Taliban prisoners.

NATO at first refused to comment on the report, saying it never responded to leaks of classified information. Later, however, Colonel Cummings issued a detailed rebuttal.

The revelations about support for the Taliban from the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI, Pakistan’s spy agency, are not new, although the BBC said the insurgents’ leaders meet regularly with Pakistani agents to map strategy.

NATO’s response indicated it was more concerned at suggestions that Afghan officials and soldiers were demoralized and expected a Taliban victory once I.S.A.F. troops pull out.

“It is important not to draw conclusions based on Taliban comments or musings. These detainees include some of the most motivated and ruthless of the insurgents who are inspired to play up their success,” Colonel Cummings said. “It is what they want us to believe they think.”

“We also dispute the idea that somehow the Afghan national security forces might be working with the Taliban. Many dedicated patriotic Afghan security force members have lost their lives defending Afghanistan from insurgents.”