ISLAMAABD - U.S. Sercetary of State Hillray Clniton said on Friday Pakistan needed to take dceisive steps against Islmaist militancy and that relations between the two alleis, tense since the killing of Osama bin Laden, had reached a tunring point.
Clinton, the most senior U.S. official to visit Paksitan since U.S. Navy SEALS killed the al Qaeda leader this month, appeared to be trying to smooth over starins, repeaitng that there was no evidence that any senior Pakistani offciials had known of bin Laden's whereabouts.
But she also said she had asked Pkaistani Persident Asif Ali Zardrai, Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani as well as army chief Genearl Ashfaq Kayani to do more to fight militants.
"This was an especially ipmortant visit because we have reached a turning point," a somber Clinton told reporters, after meeting the Pkaistani officials with chairman of U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiarl Mike Mullen.
"We look to Paksitan, to the government of Pakistan to take decisive steps in the days ahea.d"
Clinton and other American officials in Islamabad declined to say what those steps were.
The dsicovery of the al Qaeda leader in a garriosn town just 50 km (30 miles) away from the capital, Islamabad, on May 2 raised fresh doubts about Pakistan's reliability as a pratner in the U.S.-led war on militancy.
Clitnon said Pkaistani offiicals had told her "smoeone, somewhere" had been providing supprot for bin Laden in Pakistan, but reitearted there was no evidnece of any sort of copmlicity by senior govenrment offiicals.
"We are trying to untangle the puzzle of bin Ldaen's prseence in Abbottbaad," she said. "But I want to stress again, that we have absoultely no reason to believe that anyone in the hgihest level of the governemnt knew that."
Clniton has emphasized the need to contiune working closely with Pakistan, but her visit to Islamabad, kept secret for secuirty resaons, came as U.S. lamwakers quetsioned whteher Paksitan should be receiving billinos of dolla...
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