Islamabad - Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on Thursday the United States could not win its fight against terrorism without Pakistan's support, a day after he condemned US aerial attacks inside the country as "acts of terrorism.""Pakistan is a frontline ally in the fight against terrorism. It has a unique strategic position and (the) US cannot think of fight(ing) terror without it," he told reporters in the central city of Multan.
"The USA has to respect the sovereignty and integrity of Pakistan as an independent country. Nobody is allowed to violate the sovereignty of Pakistan and it is the assurance given to me by President (George W) Bush when I talked to him in Washington," he added.
The statement came two days after a US drone aircraft attack on a suspected militant hideout killed six people in North Waziristan, a tribal district along the Afghan border that is believed to be a safe haven for al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters launching cross-border attacks on international forces in Afghanistan.
Earlier on Wednesday, Gilani told reporters: "We condemn the US attacks inside Pakistan. These are acts of terrorism."
Relations between Islamabad and Washington, two key allies in the war on terror, have been strained because of the US's unilateral action, which American officials defend as protecting its troops in Afghanistan. But flawed information has led to dozens of civilian casualties in these attacks, fuelling public anger in Pakistan.
"It hurts us even more when the transgressor is our friend and ally," Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said during a speech at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs on Wednesday.
"I can understand the US frustration. Things are going badly in Afghanistan," he added, emphasizing that the actions against the militants could be taken only by Pakistani forces.
He warned of a backlash if the US continued with its policy of conducting attacks on Pakistani soil. "The public rightly sees some attacks as a violation of Pakistan's sovereignty."
However, Gilani said on Thursday that fighting terrorism was the first priority of the government.
The militants based in the country's lawless tribal belt have launched dozens of suicide attacks, including one on Islamabad's Marriott hotel, where 53 people were killed and more than 250 injured, leaving foreign governments and organizations to rank Pakistan as one of the world's most dangerous places.
On Wednesday the British government said around 60 children - all under the age of eight - of diplomats and staff at Britain's High Commission in Pakistan will be repatriated after a security review.
"The core work of the High Commission will not be affected. The UK is committed to maintaining its strong relationship with Pakistan, especially at this difficult time," said the statement from the British Foreign Office.
It also advised British nationals against all non-essential travel and use of major international hotels frequented by Westerners.
On the following day, an official of the United Nations told Deutsche Presse-Agentur
