OTTAWA

Just because captured Taliban fighters claim their Islamist movement will take over Afghanistan after NATO leaves the country doesn't mean it's so, says Defence Minister Peter MacKay.

"It's a compilation, essentially, of opinions of captured Taliban prisoners, so naturally it's going to reflect, in my view, an overly optimistic view of what's happening on the ground in Afghanistan," said MacKay, commenting on a leaked NATO report that included an ominous prediction by Taliban detainees.

The NDP's Jack Harris agrees with MacKay.

"What individual prisoners might say in these circumstances -- I wouldn't draw very much in the way of significant conclusions from that."

A NATO spokesperson confirmed the existence of the report but stressed it wasn't a strategic study.

But, as he prepared to leave for a NATO meeting in Belgium, MacKay said he was worried about renewed accusations in leaked American documents that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency has been helping the Taliban -- something Pakistan's government denies.

The minister says he hopes Pakistan's government shapes up.

"If they are a reliable ally, and if they are a country that wants to see the Unites States, Canada, Great Britain (and) other NATO allies continue to work to bring about peace and security throughout the region, then their co-operation is required -- and, in fact, is demanded," said MacKay.

Harris says he hopes Pakistan reverses course and helps stabilize Afghanistan, but he also wonders what NATO has achieved in the Central Asian country.