Zeack News

Lalit K Jha

Washington, Jun 20 : US President Barack Obama today exuded confidence that the nuclear weapons of Pakistan are safe and secure, about which a lot of concerns have been expressed in the recent past.



"I have confidence that the Pakistani government has safeguarded its nuclear arsenal. It is Pakistan's nuclear arsenal," Obama told the Dawn television of Pakistan in an interview.



"I won't engage in hypotheticals like that," Obama said when asked: "Do you actually see the possibility that one day the Taliban may take over those weapons? And if you see that happening, would you actually try to seize those weapons before the Taliban?" However, Obama said he is concerned about growing extremism in the region. "What I do have concerns about is making sure that the Taliban and other extremist organizations aren't taking root in South Asia, in Afghanistan, in the Middle East," he said.



The US president underlined the need for global cooperation to see that the "cancer" of terrorism does not take root.



"We want to partner with everybody to make sure that this cancer does not grow. One of the things that I said in my speech in Cairo is that Islam has an extraordinary tradition of tolerance and peaceful coexistence and that tradition is being distorted and being warped," Obama said. Zeack