Rice demands Pakistan help in probe

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By Anne Gearan ASSOCIATED PRESS

NEW DELHI (AP) – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday that Pakistan has a "special responsibility" to cooperate with the investigation into the deadly Mumbai attacks.

Indian and U.S. officials have blamed the three-day assault on militant groups based in Pakistan.

During a joint news conference with Rice, Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said, "there is no doubt the terrorist attacks in Mumbai were perpetrated by individuals who came from Pakistan and whose controllers are in Pakistan."

Rice came here as part of a U.S. effort to ease tensions in the region after a three-day terrorist attack killed 171 people in India's financial capital. She said the United States expects all "responsible governments" to help with the investigation and "Pakistan has a special responsibility to do so and to do so transparently, urgently and fully."

"The responsibility of the Pakistani government should be one of cooperation and of action," she said.

During the new conference, Mukherjee vowed to bring the militant leaders to justice.

"The government of India is determined to act decisively to protect Indian territorial integrity and the right of our citizens to a peaceful life with al the means at our disposal," he said.

Rice assured Mukherjee: "We are going to work very closely with you in any way you can to try to get to the bottom of what happened and then help you act on that."

She was asked at one point if the United States believes the al-Qaida was involved.

"Let me be very clear: We are not saying al-Qaida is the perpetrator here," she replied. " ... There are elements of this - the sophistication of it - that remind us that these extremenists ... that they are perhaps learning from each other, they move in the same circles. But clearly the sophistication of the attack was what I was addressing.