Terrorist safe havens in Pakistan not acceptable: Obama

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama on Friday said India was a real global partner of the United States.

“I’ve made it clear that even as the United States works with Pakistan to meet the threat of terrorism, safe havens within Pakistan are not acceptable and that those behind the Mumbai terrorist attack must face justice,” he said.

“Like people around the world, Indians and Americans were horrified at the senseless slaughter of so many students and teachers at the school in Peshawar, which was a painful reminder that terrorists threaten us all,” the US president said in an interview to India Today.

He also observed that Indians and Americans were united against fighting terrorism as both the countries had suffered at the hands of extremists.

The US president said that working with allies and partners, the United States had decimated the al-Qaeda leadership in the tribal regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan and taken out leaders of al-Qaeda affiliates in Yemen and Somalia.

“We’re leading the international coalition to destroy Islamic State (IS). We’re working with many nations to prevent foreign terrorist fighters from crossing borders and attacking our citizens.“The terrorists only know how to kill and destroy and those who claim to do so in the name of religion are betraying their own faiths,” the US president said.

He said “in contrast, the United States would keep working with partners around the world, including India, to focus on what we can build a future that delivers greater security, prosperity and dignity for all the people, including our own.”