Pakistan president says militant groups in Indian Kashmir terrorists

Islamabad: Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said in an interview published on Monday that Islamic militant groups in Indian Kashmir are "terrorists".

Zardari also indicated in the interview with the Wall Street Journal that there was an "understanding" with the United States over missile strikes on Al Qaida in Pakistan.

"We have an understanding, in the sense that we're going after an enemy together," he was quoted as saying when asked about the US strikes.

Zardari called Islamic militants "terrorists" during the interview, apparently the first time that any Pakistani leader has referred to them as such.

India has long accused Pakistan of sponsoring an Islamist insurgency in the part of the divided territory of Kashmir; a claim that Pakistan denies.