WASHINGTON: Pakistan had to do more to combat terrorists on its soil if it wanted to continue to receive substantial US aid, says John Kerry, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the US Senate.
Kerry said the weekend bomb blast in Pune shouldn't derail the resumption of diplomatic talks between India and Pakistan.
Senator Kerry also suggested that the Pune blast should be the first item on the agenda if India found a Pakistani link to the attack.
"The right thing is to talk; you lose nothing by talking," said the senator who was the Democratic presidential candidate in 2004. "I hope India will have that conversation with Pakistan and, if they have evidence to that effect, that should be the first thing on the table and Pakistan has to deal with it."
He reiterated the US stance that Pakistan had to do more to combat terrorists on its soil if it wanted to continue to receive substantial US aid. "Pakistan has got to make clear its willingness to take on internal enemies," he said.
Senator Kerry said that in his view discussions over Kashmir should not be a "prerequisite" in the initial conversation between the two nations and that the US stood ready to assist either side if asked. But, he said, "I do not think we should impose ourselves in any way."
The senator called on Pakistan's army chief Gen Ashfaq Kayani after his arrival in Islamabad. He will meet President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today.
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