January 3, 2002	Thursday	Shawwal 18, 1422

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CRAWFORD, Texas, Jan 2: US President George W. Bush called British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Wednesday to discuss how they could work together to help reduce tensions between India and Pakistan, the White House said.

Spokesman Scott McClellan said the two leaders, who spoke by telephone last Saturday, also discussed Blair’s trip to the region.

“It was part of the ongoing discussion about the ways our two nations can work together to help reduce tensions,” McClellan said.

McClellan recalled that Bush on Monday had praised Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf for the steps he had taken “to arrest and detain the extremists as well as close their offices.”

“And it is good news to learn that Indian and Pakistani leaders will be at the summit in Kathmandu and that the summit could be an opportunity for them to seek ways to make progress toward resolving their current differences and reducing tensions,” McClellan told reporters.—Reuters