Search the Internet          Tips  Links: Terror in America

Powell will ask Pak to deny facilities to terrorists

T V Parasuram in Washington

The US State Department on Thursday indicated that Secretary of State Colin Powell during his visit to Pakistan would ask Islamabad to deny facilities to terrorist groups.

"We have asked the parties in the region to use their influence and deny facilities to make it more difficult for terrorist groups to operate. We have also asked them to get the groups to refrain from violence and seek political solutions," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.

"The United States has all along tried to work with all the parties in that region to encourage them to deal with each other, to encourage them to act with restraint and to encourage them to take steps to calm the tension. We will continue to do that," he said.

"We welcome the meetings that they had earlier this year and the phone calls of the past few days," Boucher said in apparent references to the Agra summit and last week's telephonic talk between Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf.

Asked what message Powell would carry to India and Pakistan, specifically, on the question of nuclear instability in the region and Vajpayee's statements suggesting that India might take military action in Kashmir to curb militancy, Boucher said, "I am not going to get into details."

"But I think the most important thing is to thank India and Pakistan, each in their own way, for their cooperation."

On cooperation with India, Boucher said, "We have India's cooperation in the fight against terrorism, but at this point, we will leave it to the Indians to describe it. They have talked somewhat in public about the things that they are prepared to do."

Powell will take up the issue of restoration of democracy in Pakistan during his visit to Islamabad, Boucher said.

PTI

The War on Terrorism: The Complete Coverage

The Terrorism Weblog: Latest Stories from Around the World

External Link:
For further coverage, please visit www.saja.org/roundupsept11.html

Back to top

Tell us what you think of this report