ISLAMABAD: The US State Department said on Monday Pakistan had taken “some important steps” to counter terror groups, while urging it to do more to “permanently disband” outfits like the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, and what Washington described as their various front organizations.

The State Department statement comes as Pakistan’s foreign ministry on Monday summoned the US embassy’s deputy chief of mission to express concern over a statement last week by US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that called on Pakistan to ensure its territory was not used as a base for militant attacks.

The statement from the United States and India was released after a meeting between the two countries’ leaders at the White House on Friday and had received criticism from Pakistan, which called it contrary to diplomatic norms.

“We do recognize that Pakistan has taken some important steps to counter terrorist groups in line with the completion of its Financial Action Task Force actions plans,” a State Department spokesperson said, referring to a global financial watchdog that had put Pakistan on a grey list until late last year over weak terror financing controls.

“At the same time, however, we have also been consistent on the importance of Pakistan continuing to take steps to permanently disband all terrorist groups, including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and their various front organizations. And we will raise the issue regularly with Pakistani officials, and will continue to work together to counter mutual terrorist threats.”

LeT is the group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks in which more than 160 people were killed, while Jaish-e-Mohammad claimed responsibility for a 2019 bombing in Indian Kashmir that killed 40 Indian paramilitary troops.

Earlier on Monday, the Pakistani foreign office urged the US to refrain from issuing statements “that may be construed as an encouragement of India’s baseless and politically motivated narrative against Pakistan.”

“It was also emphasized that counter-terrorism co-operation between Pakistan and the US had been progressing well and that an enabling environment, centered around trust and understanding, was imperative to further solidifying Pakistan-US ties.”

Since independence from Britain in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three wars, two of them over the Muslim-majority Himalayan region of Kashmir, which they both claim in full but rule in part. Relations between them remain tense.