WASHINGTON: US Defence Secre­tary Ash Carter has said that the United States has independent relationships with India, Pakistan and Afghanistan and wants to continue this arrangement.

At a joint news briefing with the visiting Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, he said that Washington’s relationship with these three countries went beyond counter-terrorism.

“We have regular conversations with India both about counter-terrorism and about regional security issues,” said Mr Carter when a journalist asked if the US had increased its counter-terrorism cooperation with India after last week’s terrorist attacks in California.

“Obviously, terrorism of all kinds in South Asia has been and remains a serious problem,” he said when the journalist reminded him that one of San Bernardino attackers had come from Pakistan.

“India has been attacked and is continuously threatened with attack from terrorists, even as Pakistan and Afgha­nis­tan are,” he added. Mr Carter, however, refused to single out Pakistan for criticism for the alleged involvement of some of its citizens in terrorist activities.

“We have independent relationships with all three of those, and counter-terrorism isn’t the only thing we do with all three of those. But counter-terrorism is an important thing that we do with all of them,” he said.

The Indian defence minister, however, emphasised the need for international response to threats of terrorism.

“Terrorism has become a global phenomenon and requires a comprehensive response,” he said. “All affiliations must be countered without any differentiation.”

In his opening remarks, Secretary Carter defined the US-India defence partnership as an “anchor of global security”.

During the Indian defence minister’s visit to Washington, the two sides also reviewed the progress that’s been made towards cooperation on jet engines and aircraft carrier design and construction, he said.

Published in Dawn, December 12th, 2015