WASHINGTON - THE United States called on Monday for Pakistan to set a precise date for parliamentary elections, after a four-week delay was suggested following the slaying of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.

Washington would still prefer the parliamentary elections to go ahead as planned on Jan 8 if they 'can be held in a safe and secure way,' US State Department spokesman Tom Casey told reporters.

A delay 'would be acceptable' if it won broad support in Pakistan because of turmoil after Bhutto's murder, but 'the key here is that there be a date certain for the elections in Pakistan,' Mr Casey stressed.

'We do believe that Pakistan should set a specific date so the process can be open and predictable. But in terms of the precise timing of that, that's up to the people in Pakistan,' said White House spokesman Scott Stanzel.

Mr Stanzel said Pakistan had not yet acted on a US offer of 'any guidance or assistance' to help the investigation into Ms Bhutto's assassination but said 'everyone expects' a thorough probe into the killing.

Tuesday
Pakistan's election commission said it would make an announcement on Tuesday after assessing the security situation in the country, which has seen previous elections marred by bloodshed and allegations of widespread vote-rigging.

Senior government officials in Islamabad said that the elections would be postponed by at least four weeks following the wave of violence triggered by Ms Bhutto's death.

The assassination of the pro-Western Ms Bhutto plunged the nuclear-armed US ally into turmoil that has left at least 58 people dead and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage.

Ms Bhutto's party, which on Sunday named her 19-year-old son Bilawal to take over as its chairman, has demanded a UN probe into her death - something a senior Pakistani government official said was out of the question.

Mr Casey offered his congratulations to Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, and played down any concerns over Pakistan's biggest political party being led by someone so young.

'Political parties in Pakistan and elsewhere can choose who they want to have for their leadership,' he said, adding the United States stood ready to work with all leaders to ensure a moderate and democratic Pakistan.

The unrest in Pakistan has been fuelled by the government's claim that Ms Bhutto smashed her head on her car's sunroof during an Al-Qaeda suicide attack, rather than being shot to death.

Bhutto's pleas
New controversy was stirred on Monday by conservative US columnist Robert Novak, who wrote in the Washington Post that the State Department had rebuffed 'two months of urgent pleas' from Ms Bhutto to ensure her security be improved.

'The US reaction was that she was worried over nothing, expressing assurance that Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf would not let anything happen to her,' Mr Novak alleged.

Mr Casey angrily rebuffed the suggestion, insisting the US government had made clear its concerns over Bhutto's safety to the former prime minister herself 'as well as with President Musharraf and with his government.'

'It is simply untrue and I do not understand why anyone, anywhere, would assert that the United States either did not have concerns, minimised those concerns, or was not very active in trying to ensure that she was provided with whatever kind of security support she required,' the spokesman said. -- AFP