Rice tells Pak to take a tough line on terrorism

Islamabad, Dec.4 : U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has told the Pakistan Government to take a "tough line" on terrorism after arriving in Islamabad for talks.

According to the BBC, Rice has also said that Pakistan has to mount a "robust" response to last week's attacks in Mumbai, which left at least 188 people dead. India has repeatedly insisted that the attackers had links to Pakistan, which Islamabad has denied. Rice arrived in Islamabad from New Delhi where she called on both countries to show restraint in their respective responses to the Mumbai attacks.

Speaking to reporters flying from Delhi to Islamabad with her on Thursday morning, Rice said: "The global threat of extremism and terrorism has to be met by all states, taking a very tough and hard line, and so that is what I am going to discuss." This is the time for everybody to co-operate and do so transparently, and this is especially a time for Pakistan to do so".

"Pakistan has to determine its own response here. It just needs to be a robust response and it needs to be effective," she added.

During her one-day visit, Rice is scheduled to discuss the Mumbai attacks with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gillani.

After holding talks with Indian government leaders on Wednesday, Rice said that Pakistan had to act "fully and transparently" in efforts to bring to justice those involved in the Mumbai attacks. "Pakistan has a special responsibility to do so," she told a news conference after meeting Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee. "This is the time for everybody to co-operate and do so transparently, and this is especially a time for Pakistan to do so," she added.

Rice also warned India not to take actions that would provoke "unintended consequences".

"Any response needs to be judged by its effectiveness in prevention," she said.

ANI