Pakistan Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday said that terrorist Hafiz Saeed and the Lashkar e Taiba are liabilities for his country and South Asia, The Times of India reported.

“There are people in Pakistan who can be a liability in times of crisis for Pakistan and the region. I do not disagree with that,” he said at the Asia Society in New York. Asif added that Islamabad has to step up its efforts in dealing with terrorism and extremism. “Saeed, LeT, they are a liability, I accept it, but give us time to get rid of them, we do not have the assets to deal with these liabilities.”

Hafiz Saeed is the chief of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, which is believed to be a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba, the terrorist group that was allegedly behind the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Hafiz Saeed is believed to have planned the strike. Saeed been under house arrest since January.

Bowing to international pressure to crack down on terrorists, the Election Commission of Pakistan on September 9 refused to recognise the outfit launched by the Jamaat-ud-Dawa – the Milli Muslim League – as a lawful political party and warned candidates to not use the front’s name in election campaigns.