Pakistan rejects Panetta's comments on militant safe havens

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan on Saturday rejected U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta's recent comments on militant safe havens in Pakistan, a move that could intensify tensions between troubled allies Islamabad and Washington.

"We feel that the Secretary of Defense is oversimplifying some of the very complex issues we are all dealing with in our efforts against extremism and terrorism," Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Panetta said on Thursday that stabilisation efforts in Afghanistan would remain difficult as long as militants had safe havens in Pakistan.

(Writing by Qasim Nauman; Editing by Daniel Magnowski)