Obama, Modi to talk militant 'safe havens' in Pakistan

Washington, Jan 24: With US concerned about 'safe havens' in some area of Pakistan where extremists operate in virtual impunity, counterterrorism coordination would be a key topic of discussions between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "Certainly the United States values the counterterrorism coordination relationship that we have with India. And we certainly are interested in discussing with them ways that we can strengthen that relationship," Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Thursday. For a long time, he said the Obama administration has "expressed concerns about some areas of Pakistan where extremists operate in virtual impunity, and in many cases use that safe haven to carry out attacks against American forces that are operating in Afghanistan." "And that is something that we are concerned about, and we have raised those concerns with our partners in Pakistan," Earnest said. He noted that "Pakistan had taken additional steps to try to root out the extremists that are operating in that area," Earnest said. "And we certainly would welcome those steps."