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Close ranks against terror, Boucher tells Pakistan

Richard Boucher

COLOMBO: U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher told journalists here on Sunday that the Pakistan government faced ‘very big challenges’ and needed to work single-mindedly on tackling terrorism.

“I think it is important to Pakistan to get all the elements of the government lined up and working in the same direction. One of the things is working with the other institutions, including the army and the intelligence service. They need to get everybody lined up in the same direction if they are really going to tackle the terrorist problem,’ Mr. Boucher said.

He was answering questions on media reports about the alleged involvement of the ISI in the bombing of the Kabul embassy of the Indian mission in July. Mr. Boucher, who had met Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on the sidelines of the SAARC Summit on Saturday, however, did not comment on The New York Times report about reported information in possession of American intelligence on the involvement of the ISI in the Kabul attack.

“Our view is that it is important to have a good intelligence service in Pakistan, but it is also important for that intelligence service to work single-mindedly with other institutions to tackle the terrorist issue that affects so many people in Pakistan and in the broader world,” he said.

Mr. Boucher ‘welcomed’ the statement of Mr. Gilani “about looking into the causes and sources of the Kabul bombing” and said the U.S. was working very closely with Afghanistan, and cooperating with Pakistan and India in their fight against terrorism.

“All we need is to do everything to correct whoever is involved in that bombing. Democratic basis is the best way to fight terrorism. But the only way we are going to get home in these problems is through and with the cooperation of the nations in the region,’ he said.

On the International Atomic Energy Agency’s approval of the India-specific safeguards pact, Mr. Boucher said the next major step is the Nuclear Suppliers Group and India would ‘have to answer a lot of questions’ to secure a waiver from the Group when it expected to meet on August 21.

He said that the U.S. would push through expeditiously the NSG process.

“If we could do that [NSG process] expeditiously we can deliver the package to the U.S. Congress in September. We have a lot to do in the short term. We hope we can bring it to fruition. Well by the time we get to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, we hope no country will object. It is simply a process we have been working on with countries that had questions and are getting those questions answered,” he said.

Mr. Boucher said the U.S. was pleased with the consensus reached on the India-specific safeguards agreement at the IAEA governing body meeting. “We have been working with the NSG, we have that line going. India has to do some of that ... answer a lot of questions about its nuclear programme and safeguards and separation plan and all those things.”

He said the U.S. has been working as a partner with India in taking these matters forward. “Now that the Indian government has worked its way through its political issues we are going to go forward full steam with that.”

On the situation in Sri Lanka, the U.S. official said Sri Lanka must act to prevent ‘human rights abuses’ including abductions, the intimidation of media personnel and the recruitment of child soldiers.

“We have been concerned about the continuing reports of abductions, disappearances, the detention of some people and reports of intimidation against the media. All these things need to be stopped. The government needs to take action against the perpetrators,” he said.

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