Islamabad has said that the non-UN-sanctioned US assassination drone strikes against the country are in "violation of Pakistan's sovereignty."

The United States claims that its airstrikes target militants who cross the border into and out of Afghanistan, but local sources say most of the victims of the attacks have been civilians.

Pakistanis have held many demonstrations to condemn the United States violations of the country's sovereignty.

On January 31, President Barack Obama confirmed that the US uses drones in Pakistan and other countries.

In reply to questions about the use of the assassination drones by his administration in a chat with web users on Google+ and YouTube, the US president said "a lot of these strikes have been in the FATA."

Press TV has conducted an interview with former assistant to the UN secretary-general, Dennis Halliday to further discuss the issue.

The program also offers the opinions of two other guests: Antiwar activist Tighe Barry and retired senior Pakistani Air Force Officer, Sultan M. Hali.

What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.