Pakistan still considers India as its number one enemy: Clinton

Pakistan still considers India as its number one enemy even as Islamabad is becoming increasingly convinced that it needs to take action against terrorists within its own territory, secretary of State Hillary Clinton said today.

"We're dealing with a sovereign country that has a very clear idea of who they think their overall enemy is, namely India. They have slowly been convinced, and because of what's happened inside their own territory, that they have to take action," Clinton told US lawmakers at a Congressional hearing.

"I think that that will continue to lead to positive steps," Clinton said in response to a question at a hearing on Afghanistan convened by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The secretary of State said the US has clearly told Pakistan that there can be no distinction between terrorists.

"We are now making the case to our counterparts in Pakistan, both in the civilian and the military leadership, that the efforts they have made against the TTP, primarily in Swat and now in Waziristan and the Mehsud tribal core, are necessary," Clinton said.

"...but far from sufficient efforts to protect themselves; that this syndicate, this network of terrorism, has to be addressed, that whatever the utility of any of these groups might have been in the past, they have morphed into a form that poses a threat to the Pakistani government."