American and British efforts with India and Pakistan have helped in 'lowering of temperature' in South Asia, United States Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage has said.

Stressing the US had 'nuclear flashpoint concerns' with India and Pakistan, Armitage said, "I think that we have been successful but more importantly the governments in Islamabad and New Delhi have decided to reason their way through these problems."

When asked which region US found more 'menacing'-- North Korea or South Asia -- Armitage said, "We have to resolve both of them at the same time. We have no choice."

Warning that 'it would not be good policy to try to pick one over the other', Armitage said, "If you make a choice you perhaps condemn one of the region to bad fate."

Conceding that it was difficult to concentrate on North Korea, South Asia and Iraq at the same time, Armitage, who gave the interview in Tokyo last week, and which was released by the state department on Monday, expressed confidence that the Bush administration was equipped to deal with the situation as it considered Asia 'vitally important'.