Obama warns Pak on eve of India visit |
US President Barack Obama has issued a stern warning to Pakistan on the eve of his second visit to India, saying Pakistan must eliminate safe havens of terrorism as it was `not acceptable`. Obama also asked Islamabad to bring those behind the 26/11 Mumbai attacks to justice. In an interview to India Today, Obama renewed US pressure on Pakistan to crack down on terror networks and evidence of recognition within the Pakistani establishment. Obama`s words follow the massacre of school children in Peshawar, hinting that the terror apparatus set up to hurt India and for strategic gains in Afghanistan has boomeranged on Pakistan. It is clear that the US pressure has caused Pakistan to claim that they have banned Jamat-ud Dawa (JUD) and the Haqqani network, terror outfits which acted as proxies for ISI. In the interview, Obama said forging deeper ties between the two nations has been a key part of his foreign policy. Obama said he recognized India with his first state visit. He called India a natural partner, as two great democracies with strength rooted in the power and potential of citizens. As entrepreneurial societies, the nations are global leaders in innovation, science and technology. Given India`s strategic location, the two can advance our shared security and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific to make the world more secure and prosperous. Unfortunately, the US President and his wife won`t be visiting the famed Taj Mahal. Official confirmation of the cancellation of the Agra leg of his tour is still awaited as he might leave India earlier, a US government said reportedly.
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