Pakistan seeks West's help for peaceful nuclear use

The call came while President Pervez Musharraf was in New York, where he will meet US President George W. Bush later this week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Muhammad Naeem Khan declined to say whether Musharraf, an ally in Washington's war on terrorism, would take up the issue with the US president.

"We would like the developed countries. especially the Western countries and the United States to extend cooperation to Pakistan for the peaceful uses of nuclear energy," Khan told his weekly news briefing.