Preventing fresh act of terror:

Pakistan to support India

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told a summit on internal security of “credible information of ongoing plans of terrorist groups in Pakistan to carry out fresh attacks,” urging his security forces to stay on high alert.

In the wake of his remarks, India’s deputy high commissioner was called to Pakistan’s foreign ministry and told Singh’s remarks “warrant serious and prompt attention,” the ministry said in a statement. The deputy high commissioner was informed that “the government of Pakistan would like to extend its fullest cooperation to pre-empt any act of terror.”

India has boosted its security to prevent assaults after November’s attacks in the country’s financial capital Mumbai, in which gunmen killed 166 people.

“In all sincerity, we would request India to share information that they have and for our part we stand ready to cooperate fully in pre-empting any act of terror,” the Pakistan statement said. It said that terrorism could only be combated by serious, sustained and pragmatic cooperation. “We wish to renew our offer of cooperation to India in this regard,” the statement added. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training cross-border militants in Muslim-majority Kashmir — a charge Islamabad vehemently denies.

The two nuclear-armed countries have fought three wars since independence in 1947 and came dangerously close to a fourth following an attack on the Indian parliament in 2001 by militants New Delhi said came from Pakistan.

Islamabad, Tuesday, AFP