US President Barack Obama says he would order a similar attack if they discover another leading terrorist figure hiding in Pakistan
US President Barack Obama says he would order a similar attack ifu00a0they discover another leading terrorist figure hiding in Pakistan
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Ready to fight back: US President Obama greets CIA Director Leon
Panetta as he prepares to deliver remarks at the CIA headquarters in Langley.
pic/AFP
The President insisted he wanted to establish a more 'cooperative relationship' with the government in Islamabad after the outrage in Pakistan over the US action, which was carried out without notifying the authorities there. But asked what he would do if the Americans found another "very high value target" in the country he indicated he would act again.
"I've always been clear to the Pakistanis ufffd and I'm not the first administration to say this ufffd that our job is to secure the United States," he told BBC1's The Andrew Marr Show. "We are very respectful of the sovereignty of Pakistan. But we cannot allow someone who is planning to kill our people or our allies' people ufffd we can't allow those kind of active plans to come to fruition without us taking some action."
He added, "Our hope, and our expectation, is that we can achieve that in a way that is fully respectful of Pakistan's sovereignty. But I had made no secret ufffd I had said this when I was running for the presidency ufffd that if I had a clear shot at bin Laden that we'd take it." Obama acknowledged that the raid on bin Laden's compound had been a "calculated risk", which could have ended very differently."There's no doubt that that was as long a 40 minutes as I care to experience during my presidency," he said.
On the Queen
Obama also spoke warmly of the relationship he and and his wife Michelle, had established with the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, who they met when they attended the G8 summit in London in 2009. "They are extraordinarily gracious people. They could not have been kinder to us," he said. He disclosed that when Michelle Obama returned to Buckingham Palace with their two daughters, they had been given the chance to ride through the grounds in one of the carriages. "She (the Queen) could not have been more charming and gracious to the girls," he said. "I think what the Queen symbolises not just to Great Britain, but to the entire Commonwealth and obviously the entire world, is the best of England. And we're very proud of her."
Widows Battle
The three widows of Osama are turning on each other in custody, with two older Saudi women blaming a much younger Yemeni wife for leading American intelligence to their hideout. "The wives dispute over who tried to protect their husband. The older wives say they were the ones who rushed to shield him," said an official.
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