Bush gets backing from South Asia

Under the Bush presidency, US aid dollars have returned to Pakistan

Pakistan and India have congratulated the US President on his re-election.

A Pakistani government spokesman said that George Bush's win would ensure continuity of US policies, particularly in relation to the South Asia region.

India said it looked forward to a visit by the president, and that the fight against terrorism was a key priority of both countries.

Mr Bush's triumph was also welcomed by Afghanistan, which praised his determination to eliminate terrorism.

Long term ties

"This is the verdict of the people of the United States, which will go a long way in ensuring continuity in US policies particularly towards our region," Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Masood Khan told the AFP news agency.

What Bush victory means for South Asia

He said that Islamabad wanted to work with Washington in economic and commercial areas as well as in defence.

"In the past few years Pakistan and the United States have worked very hard to create a solid framework and a longer-lasting architecture for developing and strengthening our relations.

"With the second Bush administration, we will continue to work towards long term ties which look beyond the war on terrorism," Mr Khan said.

'Qualitative change'

The Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh wrote a letter of congratulation to Mr Bush.

A foreign ministry spokesman said that Mr Singh wrote that Indo-US ties had undergone "a qualitative change" because of Mr Bush.

The spokesman said that Mr Singh pointed out that both countries have shared values and their relationship was of "global significance in this century".

The US elections were closely watched in India

The prime minister was quoted as saying that "a major goal of our policy must be to deny comfort to religious extremists or terrorists".

India was one of the first countries to support Mr Bush's decision to remove the Taleban from power in Afghanistan, although it was opposed to American invasion of Iraq.

Relations between the two countries have warmed since the end of the cold war, and now they carry out joint military exercises.

The spokesman added that India "looks forward to the opportunity to welcome President Bush to India" but did not give any dates when such a visit might take place.

'Remarkable convergence'

Pakistan and the US developed closer relations after the attacks on the World Trade Centre in September 2001.

Islamabad abandoned its support of the Taleban regime and provided logistical support to US forces during the invasion of Afghanistan in return for trade benefits and debt concessions from Washington.

The BBC's Sanjoy Majumder in Delhi says that President Bush's first administration has engaged closely with South Asia since the 11 September attacks.

His victory was also welcomed in Afghanistan, where President Karzai pledged to strengthen ties between "successful partners in fighting terrorism".

Mr Karzai was himself officially re-elected president on Wednesday.