A diplomatic spat with implications for international counterterrorism escalated Saturday, when Pakistan's spy chief canceled a visit to London after the British leader suggested that Pakistan exports terrorism. A senior Pakistani intelligence official confirmed that Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shujaa Pasha had called off a trip planned for next week, when he had been due to discuss security cooperation with British intelligence bosses. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with his agency's policy. Prime Minister David Cameron outraged officials in Islamabad when he said during a visit to India that Pakistan must not be allowed to “promote the export of terror whether to India, whether to Afghanistan or to anywhere else in the world.” Pakistan insists that it has done more than any other country to combat terrorism, sending the army to fight Taliban and Al-Qaeda-linked militants within its borders and cooperating closely with Western intelligence agencies. Pakistan reacted angrily to Cameron's remarks. Wajid Shamsul Hasan, Pakistan's ambassador to Britain, called the comments “an immature reaction from an immature politician.” Cameron later conceded that Pakistan had made moves against terror organizations, but said “it still needs to take further steps.” Britain's Foreign Office said a visit to Britain by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is still scheduled to go ahead next week. – Agencies Zardari is due to stay with Cameron at his country retreat, Chequers. The Foreign Office declined to comment on Pasha's canceled trip, saying it did not discuss intelligence matters. Britain and the United States regard Pakistan as a key nation in the fight against terrorism. Britain's former prime minister Gordon Brown said that 75 percent of terror plots under investigation in Britain were linked to Pakistan. Britain is home to about one million people of Pakistani origin. Shahbaz Sharif, chief minister of Pakistan's Punjab province and a leading opposition politician, called on Zardari to cancel the trip, saying the money saved should go to help victims of devastating floods. “This money should instead be spent on the flood-affected areas,” he said. Former British Foreign Secretary David Miliband accused Cameron of alienating an important ally. “Britain needs good relations with Pakistan, and Pakistan good relations with Britain,” said Miliband, foreign-affairs spokesman for the opposition Labor Party. “The prime minister's comments this week told only part of the story and that has enraged people in Pakistan. It is vital he shows that he understands the need not just for Pakistan to tackle terrorism but that he will support them in doing so and understand the losses they have suffered,” Miliband said. – Agencies Pakistani officials say their spies have worked closely with British counterparts to investigate the 2005 London suicide bombings and to thwart several planned attacks, including a 2006 plot to blow up trans
