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As its Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke concludes his assessment on the condition of refugees in Pakistan, the US has said that the situation was ''very dire'' on the ground and it will do everything to help those displaced due to clashes between the army and militants.
Aware of the latest terrorist attacks in Pakistan, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs P J Crowley said it is devastating on one hand, but everything that the United States sees indicates that there is progress on the ground and Taliban's area of operation is shrinking.
"We know that there's a very difficult situation on the ground. They (the Taliban) still have the ability to conduct these kinds of attacks. It would appear that the tide is turning in terms of Pakistani attitudes towards the Taliban. I think we are very encouraged by that," Crowley said in response to a question.
At the same time, Crowley admitted that the current offensive has had an impact on the Pakistani population and the number of internally displaced persons are more than two million.
Crowley said it is a "very dire situation" and the US is going to do everything it can to help.
"We are going to continue in a variety of ways to assess that and to help the Pakistani government in any way that we can, make sure that we can care for these people," he said.