NEW DELHI: Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Friday said that Islamabad at heart remains a "military society" with a "strong Islamist streak" while India is totally different.
When asked about the statements made by top US Generals about working closely with Pakistan on terrorism, Abbott responded, "Look, Pakistan cooperated so closely with the United States on terrorism that they gave Osama bin Laden a home for the best part of a decade. So, look we can't be under any illusions. There are good people in Pakistan and there are people in Pakistan who you'd want to work with, but it is still at heart a military society with a strong Islamist streak. India is totally different, totally different, and I'm not saying that America should not work where it can with Pakistan. Of course it should, but it needs to know where its better friends are. I mean, when I was the Prime Minister, I thought that I would do my best to work constructively with everyone, but you've always got to know where your friends are and your friends are the ones where there's common interests, common values, and in particular, a common history and that's you've always got to realise that."