Islamabad - US vice president-elect Joe Biden on Friday held
talks with Pakistani leadership as he arrived in Islamabad as part of
a tour of the restive South Asian region less than a fortnight before
his inauguration, officials said.
Biden, who is accompanied by a congressional delegation, met
Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza
Gilani.
Zardari told Biden of 'Pakistan's commitment and the measures being
taken by the government in the war against militancy, extremism and
terrorism,' according to an official statement.
The visit came as the relations between the countries are showing
signs of strain, mainly because of increasing US drone attacks on al-
Qaeda and Taliban fighters launching cross-border attacks on
international forces in Afghanistan from Pakistan's ungoverned tribal
region.
Such attacks have eliminated dozens of al-Qaeda operatives but
Islamabad says they also cause numerous civilian casualties, fuelling
public anger and undermining its efforts against terrorism.
Although the official statement made no mention of the two leaders
addressing tensions between Pakistan and India in the aftermath of the
Mumbai terrorist attacks, an informed source said 'they touched upon
the issue in detail.'
The US senator also met Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and told
him that 'the United States of America is positive in terms of
assisting Pakistan as it is its important ally and partner.'
He has co-sponsored the Biden-Kerry-Lugar legislation for expanding
socio-economic assistance of 15 billion dollars and non-military aid
over the next five fiscal years besides advocating an additional 7.5
billion dollars over the subsequent five years.
USA
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