Pakistan's new Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani told US President George W. Bush that a broader approach to the “war on terror” is necessary, including political solutions and development programs, a statement said. Gilani, a senior official from the party of slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, made the call for a rethink in policy when Bush telephoned him on Tuesday to congratulate him on taking office. His comments came after former premier Nawaz Sharif told two US envoys on Tuesday that the new government would review President Pervez Musharraf's “one-man” anti-terror strategy and focus on Pakistan's needs. Gilani told Bush “that Pakistan would continue to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestations since it is in Pakistan's own national interest,” said a statement issued late Tuesday by his office. “However, he said that a comprehensive approach is required in this regard, specially combining a political approach with development programs,” it added. Gilani said that Pakistan was “committed to maintaining long-term close ties with the USA.” The White House said earlier that Bush told Gilani he was ready to work with him and that they both stressed the need to fight extremism. Analysts said the US visit was designed to woo the new government and smooth relations between it and Musharraf, amid fears that instability in the nuclear-armed nation will hurt efforts to tackle militancy. Sharif said he told Negroponte that a parliamentary committee would look at Musharraf's anti-terror policies, adding that the new government wanted to tackle extremism but did not want the country to become a “murder-house.” Meanwhile Bush used his authority to exempt Pakistan from a law that restricts funding countries where the legitimate head of state was deposed by a military coup, as in Pakistan, the White House said Tuesday. __
