ISLAMABAD, Sept 14: The United States has once again declined to treat Pakistan at par with India on the issue of nuclear energy for civilian purposes.Sources told Dawn on Friday that during his talks in Islamabad, US Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte had advised Pakistani officials to meet their energy needs by importing electricity from Central Asian states.

He said his country was ready to offer funds to help Pakistan import power from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan for which the

Asian Development Bank also plans to offer $150 million.

The sources said that the subject of nuclear energy figured prominently during Mr Negroponte’s meetings, the second round of ‘strategic dialogue’.

A source said the US side had made it clear that Pakistan and India could not be treated equally on the nuclear issue and Islamabad should not insist on it.

The US side said it could help Pakistan meet its rising energy needs through other means. It also asked Pakistan to explore sources other than nuclear energy.

The US officials were told that power production was not keeping pace with the development of other sectors.