WASHINGTON, Sept 22: Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said Pakistan is ‘training a snake that can also bite the trainer.’

Addressing the US Council on Foreign Relations on Thursday, Mr Karzai claimed that Pakistan’s toleration of pro-Taliban militants had contributed to Afghanistan’s instability.

He said that cooperating with terrorists was like ‘trying to train a snake against somebody else.’ He added: “You cannot train a snake. It will come and bite you.”

In a direct reference to the domestic politics of Pakistan where opposition groups accuse President Pervez Musharraf of encouraging religious parties, Mr Karzai said some in the region were using terrorists to maintain political power.

Presidents Karzai and Musharraf have used much of this week’s UN General Assembly meeting for trading barbs and criticizing each other’s efforts to fight terrorists.

Mr Karzai played down a growing Taliban-led insurgency in Afghanistan that aims at toppling his US-backed government.

He said the Taliban had killed teachers and children and destroyed clinics and schools. “Is that strength? No. Is it popular base? No.”