US wants Pakistan to get tough on terror
Dated 25/2/2006
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Just ahead of US president George W.Bush's visit to South Asia, America has asked Pakistan to go tough against terrorism and forge a national consensus to return democracy to that country.
The US state department has diplomatically conveyed to Pakistan that questions are being raised about Pakistan’s ability to deal with terrorism.
Islamabad, it says, must take steps that are visible and effective on the ground to deal with terrorism, so that Pakistan can be considered a responsible member of the international community.
The US is showing discomfort with Pakistan as Bush is coming under increasing pressure from American lawmakers about Pakistan’s sincerity to fight terrorism.
Pakistan has been trying to use its past cooperation on dealing with terrorism as a point to bring pressure on India to find a solution to the Kashmir issue.
But the US has strongly rejected any mediating role for itself since the Indo-Pak peace process is going well.