Washington, July 30 : Journalists accompanying Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani are a furious lot as they were made to wait for 6-8 hours at the Andrews Air Force Base on Sunday afternoon, and also because some of them were not invited to the dinner hosted by Pakistan ambassador in Washington Hussein Haqqani, despite the fact that money was spent lavishly in decorating the venue and giving expensive floral bouquets to the quests.

Washington, July 30: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s coalition government seems to be “too weak to act” as the country is seen grappling with internal disputes, and is weighed down by the pressures of a fast souring economy, says a report in the Time magazine.

According to it, Gilani is also viewed as “ceding many prerogatives of the prime minister’s office to PPP Co-chairman Asif Zardari and to Rehman Malik, Benazir Bhutto’s security chief who is, in effect, Pakistan’s minister for the interior”.

Washington, July 29: Barely a few hours after US-led coalition forces’ air strike killed six persons in FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas), US President George Bush last evening said that his country respected Pakistan’s sovereignty, and described its democracy as “vibrant”.

In a brief statement to the presspersons after holding talks with visiting Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in the Oval Office, Bush said that both admitted that terrorism and extremism were dangerous for everyone, including Pakistan.

New York, July 28: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s ongoing visit, his first after becoming PM, to the US will give President George Bush an opportunity to recast relations with Islamabad, making it clear that Washington is committed to strengthening both Pakistan’s democracy and its ability to fight extremism.

That will require a lot more economic assistance and more carefully monitored military aid, said an article in the New York Times.

Islamabad, July 28 : The reversal of the decision to place the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) under the Interior Ministry’s control is “very embarrassing” for Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani as it occurred while he was en route to the US, said PML-N chairman Raja Zafarul Haq said.

He said that the PPP-led government did not consult the PML-N, who is an outside supporter to the federal government, before taking the decision.

Islamabad, July 27 : Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has strongly condemned the serial blasts in Ahmedabad and Bangalore on July 26 and 25, respectively.

He expressed his deep sympathies with the bereaved families and the victims of these acts of violence against innocent people, says a foreign office statement, reported the Daily Times.