The White House has refused to endorse a top U.S. military officer's accusation that Afghanistan's militant Haqqani network is acting as a “veritable arm” of Pakistan's main intelligence service.

White House spokesman Jay Carney says the comment made last week by departing Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mike Mullen is “not language that I would use.”

During a congressional testimony, Admiral Mullen said Haqqani militants blamed for attacks on U.S. targets in Afghanistan were acting with the support of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Agency, the ISI. Pakistan strongly rejects that charge.

Carney said said Washington wants Islamabad to take action against the network. But he stressed Pakistan has been “very helpful” to the United States in fighting the al-Qaida terrorist group “in particular.”

In London, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said Britain's relationship with Pakistan “is there to stay.” He said London “will stand by Pakistan as it addresses the challenges it faces and build a durable relationship that will stand the test of time.”

Pakistan's High Commissioner in Britain, Wajid Shamsul Hassan, told VOA that in the current scenario of tension between the United States and Pakistan, Hague's remarks in Pakistan's support are quite significant. Hassan said that U.S.-Pakistani relations “will get back on track as both regard each other as an important ally.”

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal published Wednesday, Admiral Mullen said he had been Pakistan's “best friend,” but that he will not stand for losing U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan to Haqqani attacks. He said it is “very clear” that the Pakistani ISI has supported the Haqqanis, even though he does not believe the militants can be “turned on and off like a switch.”

Admiral Mullen will retire from his post later this week.