Pakistan review must respect U.S. security needs - Obama

U.S. President Barack Obama told Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday he hoped a Pakistan parliamentary review of fraught ties with Washington would be balanced and respect U.S. security needs.In the highest-level contact between the uneasy allies since U.S. commandos killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in a Pakistani military town last May, Obama conceded relations had been strained in recent months.Pakistan’s cooperation is considered critical to U.S. efforts to stabilise Afghanistan before most foreign combat troops leave at the end of 2014. Pakistan has strong traditional links with the Afghan Taliban and other militant groups.Pakistan’s parliament has been drawing up recommendations on how to proceed on ties with Washington, including a halt to U.S. drone strikes in the country that have enraged many Pakistanis.“I welcome the fact that the parliament in Pakistan is reviewing, after some extensive study, the nature of this relationship,” Obama said at the start of the meeting on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in Seoul.“I think that it’s important for us to get it right.”The White House parried the question of whether drone strikes had been discussed during their meeting, saying only that on counter-terrorism, the leaders reviewed how to ensure an ongoing dialogue to improve cooperation.Gilani said he was pleased to hear Obama talk about sovereignty, and both men spoke of their mutual interest in a stable Pakistan and Afghanistan, putting a measured public face on what has become a severely damaged diplomatic relationship.