Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said that India is not a threat to his country and it is facing danger from the terrorists within.
"Well, I am already on record. I have never considered India a threat," Zardari said in an interview on Saturday.
This is the first time a top Pakistani leader has publicly said that India is not a threat to his country; a fact which Obama Administration has been trying to convince Zardari and the Pakistan Army for quite some time now.
"I have always considered India a neighbour, which we want to improve our relationship with. We have had some cold times and we have had some hard times with them. We have gone to war thrice, but democracies are always trying to improve relationships," Zardari said while responding to a question about "which being the greatest threat to Pakistan? India, or the militants."
In April, at a White House press conference held on the occasion of his 100 days in office, Obama had said such a believe against India by the Pakistani establishment was "misguided".
It is believed that both Obama and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in their meetings with Zardari this week impressed upon him that Pakistan should no longer consider India as a primary threat and rather concentrate its energies on fighting terrorism inside the country.
However, there has been no official word from the Obama Administration in this regard so far after the meetings. While responding the question about moving troops from Indian border to the tribal areas of Pakistan to fight the war against terrorism, Zardari said, "Pakistan has already done so."
In an interview to a television channel on Friday, Zardari had said Pakistan has already move troops from the Indian border and would do more based on the requirement.
"The fact is that we have moved more troops today and yesterday and the day before. We moved them according to the requirement. We already have 125,000 personnel there. So when we need to replace them, we need to improve upon their strength, we do that," Zardari said in response to a question.
Paris Olympics 2024: India Beat New Zealand 3-2 in Men's Hockey Opener Ind vs SL 1st T20I: Suryakumar Yadav-Gautam Gambhir Regime Starts With 43-Run Win Against Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Spinner Bowls With Both Hands Against India - Here's What Rules Say Student Dies, 2 Others Trapped In Delhi Coaching Centre's Flooded Basement At Olympics Opening Ceremony, Drag Parody Of 'The Last Supper' Draws Flak US Scientists Play God: New Element Created In A Lab Experiment DSSSB Exam Schedule 2024 Released For Recruitment To Various Posts AAP's Atishi Calls For Meeting After Delhiites Complain Of Blue Tap Water Woman Gym Trainer, 21, Killed Inside Delhi Flat Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.