Pak ready to help over bin Laden — interior Minister

"First those governments should hold negotiations and listen to each other’s point of view," the retired army general said.

"Then we will try our best to resolve the issue."

Washington wants Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban militia to hand over bin Laden, a billionaire Saudi dissident who is on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list.

Bin Laden has been charged in the United States with the bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in August last year in which 224 people died.

But the Taliban refuse to hand over bin Laden, saying that would breach their traditional cultural obligations to a guest.

"We think there should be a direct dialogue between the two if America believes that Osama is a terrorist and should not live in Afghanistan," Haider said.

"Pakistan never believes in a policy of interference."

Haider said Pakistan’s military ruler, general Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a coup in October, was committed to putting an end to terrorism as a "priority."

Meanwhile, the Taliban said today that they have taken away all access to telephone and fax machines from indicted terrorist Osama bin Laden.

But they refused to hand over the billionaire Saudi dissident. "Just to bring down the concerns of the international community we have taken communications from him," Sayed Mohammad Haqqani, Afghanistan’s ambassador to Pakistan, told a news conference.

"He is living as a free person but while under some controls," Haqqani said, speaking through an official interpreter.

The bearded Taliban official, dressed in white turban and the traditional shalwar kameez, insisted bin Laden was planning no terrorist activities.

"We are confident of one thing and that is that Osama carries out no activities," he said.

"He is just a guest, he cannot act against anyone. The Islamic emirate of Afghanistan is anti-terrorism and always has announced its readiness for cooperation with the world community in this concern", he said.