Anne Patterson, the US ambassador to Islamabad, spoke earlier with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi as part of the probe into the botched Saturday car bombing in Times Square. Crowley told reporters that Patterson briefed the Pakistanis about what the United States had learned in the case so far in a case that has implicated a Pakistani-American, Faisal Shahzad.
But he added: "I cannot say what specific requests Ambassador Patterson may have made of the Pakistanis." He also said US and Pakistani law enforcement officials and intelligence officials were also in contact with each other. "And we're trying to understand and trace now... what did this individual do when he was on the ground in Pakistan, who did he meet, and what are the implications of those actions," Crowley said.
He said he is "not sure we're at that point yet" in which Washington asks Islamabad to take specific steps, stressing the investigation was still in its early stages. "This is not a static situation, in that Pakistan itself is already taking action against .... many groups, some of whom might over time be implicated in this action," he said.
"So as we get deeper into this, there will be the opportunity for us to pass along information that we have gleaned here, and that in turn Pakistan can certainly help us understand, you know, contacts that might have been made in Pakistan and how .... they influenced the choices that this individual made."
Shahzad, accused of planting a large but poorly made car bomb in crowded Times Square on Saturday, underwent extensive questioning but has not yet faced charges in court after waiving his right to a speedy arraignment. Authorities questioned the suspect for a fourth consecutive day, trying to determine whether the 30-year-old son of a retired air force officer acted alone or had outside help from a larger group.