Pak says it's acting on India's info | Gets the dossier

Islamabad: Pakistan on Monday assured the US that it was examining the "information" provided by India in its probe into the Mumbai attacks and was committed to punish any Pakistani national in case "credible evidence" is found against them.

The assurance was given by President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in their separate meetings with visiting US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher.

The American diplomat's arrival on Monday morning coincided with India’s submission of a dossier on its probe into the attacks to Pakistan.

Official sources were quoted in media reports as saying that the Pakistani leadership also informed Boucher it was examining the evidence provided by India and a formal response would be framed shortly.

Gilani informed Boucher about "Pakistan's persistent efforts to defuse the current tensions with India and his government's commitment to take action against any Pakistani national in case credible evidence is provided", said a statement issued by the Prime Minister's House.

A separate statement issued by the presidency quoted Zardari as telling Boucher that Pakistan had offered "every possible cooperation" to India for investigating the Mumbai incident.

Pakistan is committed to fighting terrorism and extremism in "its own interest" and appreciated the role played by the US in "advising restraint and de-escalation", Zardari said.

He said Pakistan is pursuing a "cooperative partnership with regional countries" to eradicate terrorism and expressed hope that his forthcoming visit to Afghanistan will contribute to enhanced cooperation in security, counter-terrorism and economic development.

Boucher also met Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who said Pakistan had offered to cooperate with India to investigate the Mumbai attacks in the spirit of a "regional approach through close partnerships" to counter terrorism.

The move was also aimed at helping "build bilateral engagement and dialogue", Qureshi said.

Gilani also expressed the hope that the new US government will pursue President-elect Barack Obama's initiative to appoint a special envoy to help resolve the Kashmir issue for lasting peace in the region.

The statement from the Prime Minister's House stated that "Boucher agreed with the Prime Minister on the need for an early resolution of the Kashmir dispute".

"Once the present crisis was defused and the situation was normalised, the US government would move ahead with its initiative to help the two countries find a solution (to) the Kashmir dispute," Boucher said.

Boucher also assured Gilani that the US is committed to assist Pakistan economically and efforts will also be made to help the country militarily through the new US Congress, the statement said.

The Pakistani leadership also took up with Boucher the Israeli attack on Gaza, with Gilani saying that the strikes had caused "hundreds of innocent civilian casualties".

He urged the US and the world community to play their role for ending "Israeli atrocities against the Palestinians".

Gilani also called for the immediate repatriation of Pakistani national Afia Siddiqui, who has been detained by American authorities on terror charges, and the release of five Pakistani nationals currently being held in Guantanamo Bay prison.

Gilani also raised the issue of the promised US legislation for setting up reconstruction opportunities zones (ROZs) in Pakistan's tribal belt, pledged assistance for building the capacity of the country's law enforcement agencies and foreign military funding for the defence forces.

Zardari also conferred the Hilal-i-Qaid-i-Azam, one of Pakistan's highest civilian honours, on Boucher for his efforts to strengthen Pakistan-US relations.