Disposing of Al-Qaeda critical for Pak's survival: Clinton - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Visiting US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton continued to reprimand Pakistan on its laid back attitude towards tackling the terror menace, and has said that the country cannot come out of the crisis until it works sincerely to dispose of Al-Qaeda and other outlawed organisations. "I think it is absolutely clear and I am convinced that you will never rid Pakistan of the threat of terrorism unless you rid it of Al Qaeda," Clinton told media person here. Clinton said Pakistan should take the threat posed by Al-Qaeda seriously as it not only threatens its own people, but is a serious risk for the whole world including the US. "We don't know where, and I have no information that they know where, but this is a big government... Somebody, somewhere in Pakistan must know where these people (Al Qaeda operatives) are... and we'd like to know because we view them as really at the core of the terrorist threat that threatens Pakistan, threatens Afghanistan, threatens us," The Daily Times quoted Clinton, as saying. Acknowledging the fact there was trust deficit between both the countries, she said the Obama Administration is committed to having a long-term partnership with Islamabad. Clinton said Washington would not only continue to provide military assistance for the success of the South Waziristan offensive against the Taliban, but would also help the troubled nation in the reconstruction work after the operation is called-off. She said that it was important that the extremists are rooted out from the region, and cautioned that the remnants of the terrorist networks may strike once again. "We will have to remain vigilant," Clinton added.