The unilateral action taken by the U.S. forces to
kill the al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil has hurt the
public sentiments, said the Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari here
on Friday.
The president made the remarks during a meeting with
the visiting U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at his
presidential office in Islamabad.
During the meeting, Zardari also demanded the United
States to stop the drone strikes in the country's northwestern tribal
areas.
The president also said that Pakistan has suffered a
great loss of lives in fight against terrorism and its economy has been
badly affected by terrorism.
Local watchers pointed out that the messages sent by
the Pakistani president during his meeting with Hillary Clinton have
reflected at least three demands put forward by the Pakistani side on
the United Sates to ease the current tensions between the two countries.
Firstly, the United States must ensure that
unilateral actions like the May 2nd raid by the U.S. forces on the
Pakistani soil shall not be repeated as such unilateral actions have
seriously violated the sovereignty of Pakistan.
Secondly, the U.S. side must stop the drone strikes
as such strikes have not only violated the territorial air right of
Pakistan but also have caused a strong anti-American sentiment in the
country, which in return have exerted a great pressure on the ruling
party of the Pakistan People's Party co-chaired by Zardari and his son. Xinhua
