Washington, Jan 23 : Richard Holbrooke, US President Barack Obama special envoy for the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, has said that the situation in Pakistan is very complex.

Obama chose Holbrooke, a former ambassador to the United Nations, as his special envoy for Afghanistan, Pakistan and related issues, The Nation reported.

This is a very difficult assignment as we all know," said Holbrooke, once dubbed the Kissinger of the Balkans.

"Nobody can say the war in Afghanistan has gone well," he said

"In Pakistan the situation is infinitely complex. I will say that in putting Afghanistan and Pakistan together in the one envoy we fully respect Pakistan has its own history and its own traditions," Holbrooke added.

Ambassador Holbrooke, 67, is credited with negotiating the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995. He will coordinate his efforts with the national security council and the State Department.

In his brief remarks, Hobrooke said he would coordinate foreign assistance programmes in both countries to bring coherence to US efforts in the region and advance American goals.

In a speech during his maiden visit as President to the US State Department, Obama said Pakistan and Afghanistan are central in the war on terror.

He said the situation remained "perilous" in Afghanistan and any progress in combating the Taliban-led insurgency will take time.

New envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke would lead "our effort to forge and implement a sustainable approach to this critical region," Obama said.

"The American people and the international community must understand that the situation is perilous. And progress will take time," he added. (ANI)