The two officials are part of a larger delegation meeting with senior Obama administration officials in Washington this week. Pakistan's uneasy relationship with the CIA has been a focus of the talks.
Pakistan's foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, said he had asked the United States to provide unmanned aircraft that his government could use to strike extremists along the border, according to an interview published by the Associated Press.
The proposal reflects growing discomfort in Pakistan with the escalated campaign of missile strikes by CIA drone aircraft. Qureshi said he believed Pakistan should have control over such operations within its borders.
But the U.S. is unlikely to cede operational control over one of its most potent weapons against Al Qaeda's leadership. At the meeting with reporters, Panetta declined to discuss the matter and said he was not aware of the Pakistani request.
Panetta cited other international concerns, including rampant drug violence in Mexico as well as deteriorating conditions in Somalia, Yemen and other countries seen as potential havens for Al Qaeda.
The "relationship between Somalis here and Somalia raises real concerns about the potential for terrorist activity," Panetta said, referring to the large Somali population in Minneapolis-St. Paul. A recent case in which a Minnesota resident returned to Somalia and became a suicide bomber has raised alarm among U.S. counter-terrorism officials.
Panetta also aimed criticism at his predecessors, saying they failed to set clear boundaries for the CIA that were consistent with American values and the Constitution.
"There was a deliberate effort not to develop firm ground rules, to be able to do things in a haphazard manner," Panetta said, adding that he believes the agency does not need so-called enhanced interrogation methods or other harsh measures to get intelligence from terrorism suspects.
His disclosure of the new CIA report on the economy reflects an expanded focus on economic issues across the U.S. intelligence community.
Director of National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair testified on Capitol Hill on Wednesday that economic instability "can loosen the fragile hold that many developing countries have on law and order."
Already, Blair said, several European governments have been destabilized by economic distress and "much of Eurasia, Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa lack sufficient cash reserves and access to international aid."
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greg.miller@latimes.com
