US calls Pakistan ‘stalwart partner’ in fight against terrorism

F.P. Report

WASHINGTON: Amid upsurge in the terrorist attacks in Pakistan, the United States has said that the South Asian country will continue to be its “stalwart partner” in the fight against terrorism.

“We’ve talked in recent days about our commitment to stand with Pakistan in the face of these security threats,” Ned Prince, the State Department spokesperson, said in response to a question from a Pakistani journalist, who pleaded for help to Pakistan which is now being hit by terrorists with increasing frequency.

The journalist had pointedly asked whether Washington would provide any help to Pakistan, an ally which stood by for 20 years in the war on terror, losing 75,000 people in the process.

The remarks by Price, the State Department spokesperson, came Tuesday in the wake of the recent Peshawar Police Lines terrorist attack that killed over 100 people.

But Price, the State Department spokesperson, side-stepped the question about the US aid, saying, “Of course, this is – any terrorist attack is something that we condemn with the utmost vociferousness. But this attack resulted in the deaths of scores of innocent civilians as well as public servants, individuals who had dedicated their lives to protecting their fellow Pakistani citizens,”

“This is a scourge that affects Pakistan, it affects India, it affects Afghanistan. It is something that we’re focused on throughout the entire region. When it comes to Pakistan, they’re an important partner of the United States and a partner in any number of ways. We’ve talked in recent days about our commitment to stand with Pakistan in the face of these security threats,” he said.

“Pakistan will continue to be a stalwart partner of the United States and vice versa in the face of these types of horrific terrorist attacks,” Price added.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who recently visited Washington, had said that Pakistan and the US would soon hold counter-terrorism talks. (APP)