WASHINGTON: Pakistan has received yet another public smackdown from the United States for its loose talk on the use of nuclear weapons against India. This came as Islamabad ’s efforts to seek the intervention of the United Nations and major world powers in its spat with New Delhi ran aground.On Friday, Obama administration officials very bluntly disparaged “some of the rhetoric from the Pakistani government” about the possibility of using nukes , saying, “nuclear-capable states have a very clear responsibility to exercise restraint regarding nuclear weapons and missile capabilities”.The put-down by State Department spokesman Mark Toner came in response to questions about Pakistan defence minister Khwaja Asif ’s remarks that his country was prepared to use nuclear weapons against India and that (the weapons) “were not showpieces”. Asif ’s comments accentuated Pakistan’s slack nuclear policy that has long invited international censure.The remarks from the state department spokesperson follow the revelation that US presidential nominee Hillary Clinton was worried about Pakistan’s nuclear weapons being taken over by jihadis through a coup to give rise to nuclear-armed suicide bombers.In course of the US dressing-down to its one-time ally, Toner also confirmed Washington’s stand that the assault on the Uri brigade headquarters in Kashmir was an offshoot of the cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.“We have consistently expressed our concerns regarding the danger that cross-border terrorism poses for the region, and that certainly includes the terrorist attacks in Uri,” Toner said, urging Pakistan to take actions to “combat and delegitimize” terrorist groups like Lashkare-Taiba, Haqqani Network, and Jaish-e-Mohammad.The groups are widely seen as state proxies, nurtured by weapons and funds from state coffers as part of its irregular warfare against India. Pakistan’s denialists, including its cabinet ministers and top officials, have taken to alleging that India staged the Uri attack in a false flag operation to vilify Pakistan, or that it is the work of Kashmiri separatists. But the country’s long and well-established reputation as a terrorist swamp, highlighted by its hosting of Osama bin Laden and dozens of other terrorists, makes this a hard sell in the global forum.Pakistan’s attempt through the week to rouse the UN Security Council , the P-5 nations, and its purported allies to its troubles with India met with no visible success at the UN. Even its much-vaunted ally China has told Pakistan to sort out the problems peacefully and bilaterally, even as it extended the “technical hold” that balked efforts to put JeM chief Masood Azhar on a UN terror list.Indian officials were pleased that there has been no adverse reaction to the surgical strike across the LoC — a cause Pakistan itself helped by claiming there was no such raid. In fact, a flurry of messages from key US lawmakers in the wake of the strike indicate New Delhi has Congressional support for its effort to thwart Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, besides that of the Obama administration.“Uri attack against India was horrific. Prayers are with victims’ families. I will continue to follow India's subsequent counter terrorism op closely,” Congressman Steny Hoyer , the Democratic whip in the US House of Representatives tweeted on Friday. “Our sympathy and support go out to India as they work to counter the terrorism they faced in the Uri attack,” said Congressman Pete Olson from Texas, the vice-chair of House Energy and Power Committee.Pakistan also tied itself in knots by seeking UN intervention on Kashmir despite openly hosting UN-designated terrorists, one of whom, Hafiz Saeed , tweeted threats against India through the week.