President General Pervez Musharraf on Monday asked the United States to help resolve conflicts in South Asia and the Middle East for a durable peace, an official statement said. The President made these remarks during a meeting with a bipartisan US Senate delegation which included Republicans John McCain, Susan Collins and Lindsey Graham and Democrats Russell Feingold and Hillary Clinton, wife of former president Bill Clinton.

"The President has urged the United States to move from the stage of conflict management and assist in conflict resolution to bring durable peace to South Asia and the Middle East," a foreign ministry statement said.

The President during the hour-long meeting exchanged views with the US senators on developments in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Pakistan-India peace process, it said.

The Senate delegation welcomed the progress in Pakistan's relations with India and commended Musharraf's "courageous leadership" in fighting terrorism and extremism, it said.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2005