Gates: Drone strikes part of talks to mend US-Pakistan relations

U.S. and Pakistani leaders are working though a number of issues as they try to move beyond a “difficult spell” caused by the revelation that Osama bin Laden was hiding there, says Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

The two nations have been walking on eggshells and criticizing one another since a May 1 raid near Islamabad killed the al Qaeda leader.

U.S. lawmakers from both parties have called for aid to Pakistan to be cut off or heavily restricted. The Pakistani parliament passed a resolution calling on Washington to halt drone strikes there on al Qaeda and Taliban targets.

{mosads}The U.S. has kept up the remotely piloted aircraft strikes, however, carrying out several since the bin Laden raid.

It is an issue the two sides are discussing, Gates told ABC News before a Saturday landing in Kabul, Afghanistan.

“First of all, it has to be acknowledged that these drones have played a significant role in taking a lot of Taliban leaders and trainers off the table,” Gates said. “The question really then becomes the role of the drones, our relationship with Pakistan, and how this all fits together. And I think that’s the discussion that we’re having.”

Overall, the outgoing Defense secretary said the two nations “need each other.”

Repairing the already often-strained relationship is “complicated business,” according to Gates. “It is a complicated relationship. And clearly, the drones are a piece of that.”