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Pakistan Pledges Cooperation with India, Urges Restraint

29 November 2008

Pakistan's government says it is prepared to deepen its engagement with India on counter-terrorism, but says it is important for India to avoid the "blame game"

In a statement issued late Friday, Pakistan's Foreign Office said Pakistan has condemned the horrific terrorist attacks in Mumbai at the highest levels.

Earlier on Friday, both Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani pledged their support for India, during separate phone calls to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. 

Pakistani leaders also said they would send the country's top intelligence official to India to help in the investigation into the attacks.

Indian officials have said the militants were from outside India, and Mr. Singh reportedly told Mr. Gilani that some of the attackers were from the Pakistani city of Karachi.  India's foreign minister (Pranab Mukherjee)  also said the gunmen had links to Pakistan.

But the Pakistani prime minister stressed his government does not believe Pakistan is involved in the Mumbai attacks.

Pakistani's foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, also urged people to avoid casting blame on Pakistan.  He noted that he himself had narrowly escaped a terror attack in Islamabad earlier this year.

Qureshi arrived in India before the attacks Wednesday for talks with his Indian counterpart.  He said on Friday that he chose to remain on Indian soil to express Pakistan's solidarity with the people of India.

India has blamed Pakistan for past terrorist attacks.  The two neighbors have also fought two wars over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

 


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